


Desperado

by bubblygal92



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Post-Episode: s02e13 Doomsday, Reunions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-10 05:58:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 44,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1155960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubblygal92/pseuds/bubblygal92
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five years after Doomsday, Rose Tyler is the Defender of the Earth in every sense of the word. But when she receives some shocking news, it might be time to find a way across the universes. A tale about friendship, love, growing up and coming home. Reunion fic. Set post series 2.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_"Am I ever going to see you again?"_

_"You can't."_

_"What're you going to do?"_

_"Oh, I've got the TARDIS. Same old life, last of the Time Lords."_

_"On your own?"_

_Nod._

_"I...I love you."_

_"Quite right, too. And I suppose, if it's my last chance to say it, Rose Tyler..."_

**5 years later...**

The red numbers on the digital clock changed from 5:59 to 6 and irritating beeping filled the room. A hand emerged from the deep red duvet and slapped the button sharply, effectively cutting the noise off. The woman sat up in bed, her blonde hair obscuring half her face.

She didn't waste long getting out of bed and heading towards her bathroom. It was Sunday and her day off. Also, it was one of the rare ones since she had been woken up by her alarm and not a call from Torchwood.

Of course as was natural for her on her day off, she had a gym session. She cursed under her breath in a language she had never actually learnt and hurried out of the bathroom, dressed in her workout clothes.

The sun was slowly rising over the city of London and golden light filtered into her flat but she didn't stop to admire it. Instead, she raced out of her flat and went to the carpark where her Torchwood issue dark SUV was parked.

Even this early in the morning and on the weekend of all things, there was still traffic on the roads and she drummed her fingers impatiently on the steering wheel as she waited for the long line of cars to get a move on. Finally, after nearly 45 minutes of being stuck on the road, she pulled into the carpark of Kylie's gym.

Kylie Johnson was a 5 foot tall blonde terror who was nothing short of a dictator when training her clients. She taught a combination of gymnastics, kick-boxing and even a little ballet. Anyone's first impression of her would be a sweet, petite girl but the reality was that the girl was strong and agile who could bring hulking men to their knees with a few well-placed manoeuvres.

"You're late, boss," said the dark-skinned woman waiting in the gym's carpark. Adeola Oshodi, or Addy as she was better known, was on her team at Torchwood. Addy was a tech specialist and only a year younger than her.

"Sorry, sorry," she apologised. "Traffic was awful."

"Let's hope the Sergeant sees it that way," Addy joked. Sergeant was what Kylie was called behind her back.

"Tyler! Oshodi! You're late!" the barking voice sounded as soon as they had stepped foot inside.

"Sorry, S...Kylie," said Rose. "It was my fault."

"Oshodi, warm up and then cardio. Tyler, with me," Kylie barked.

"Aye, aye Sergeant," Addy murmured under her breath. "Good luck, boss."

Rose knew she was likely to need it since the Sergeant looked like she was in a bad mood. "So, what are we doing today?" she asked, trying to sound positive.

"The laser cage," Kylie said, giving her a sweet smile.

Rose repressed the urge to groan as she followed Kylie. The laser cage was exactly as it sounded. It was a tiny passageway that had lasers zigzagging through it. The objective was simple: jump through the lasers without getting hit. If you got hit, a loud alarm would go off. But as Kylie often reminded Rose, in real life the alien laser will likely vaporise the body part that came in contact with it. Wasn't that a cheery thought, Rose thought gloomily as she stretched her limbs getting her body ready to make complicated jumps through the "cage".

"That's enough stretching, Tyler," said Kylie. "I'll go easy on your first go. Only five lasers."

Five lasers meaning five jumps. Kylie switched on the lasers and Rose took careful note of the gaps between them and raised her arms above her head.

Cartwheel...Handspring...Roundoff...Somersault...LOUD ALARM

Rose winced quietly as the lasers disappeared. "Sorry," she said, standing up.

"What went wrong?" Kylie asked in a calm voice that indicated that she knew exactly what it had been.

"Somersault," Rose said through gritted teeth. "It should have been a back Handspring again. There wasn't enough space."

"Well you're not completely incompetent, I'll give you that," said Kylie sweetly. "Again!"

Rose bit the inside of her cheeks to stop herself from snapping back. It was Kylie's way of pushing them and Rose had to reluctantly admit that it worked. She nodded and took up position.

Cartwheel...Handspring...Roundoff...Back Handspring...Somersault...Landing!

Rose's face was flushed as she safely reached the other end. She looked to Kylie who gave a nod.

"Now with seven!" she ordered.

Rose sighed and stretched again before taking up stance. It was going to be a long session.

However thirty minutes into working with seven lasers which were in motion, Rose's phone went off. Rose was sweating profusely as she reached the other end and with a nod from Kylie, picked up her phone.

"Tyler," she answered.

"Commander, hate to do this on your day off but we got a situation." It was the voice of her second in command, Johnny Chester.

"Fill me in," Rose said as she dabbed off her perspiration with a towel.

"We have unidentified aliens holed up in a warehouse near the Thames. The usual traces have turned up empty. We can't ID them," said Johnny. "Sending you a picture."

Rose removed her phone from her ear to see the image sent to her. She saw the aliens' picture and grimaced. "Johnny," she said, putting her phone back to her ear again. "Use infrared to find the exact number of aliens in the warehouse. They are known hostiles. Llriks is what they're called."

"How hostile, boss?" Johnny asked in a worried voice.

"Hostile enough that you wait for me to get there," Rose ordered, beckoning imperiously to Addy as she walked out of the gym. "We need shotguns filled with BR-4 rounds."

"Is that fatal for the Llirks?" Johnny asked.

"Llriks," Rose corrected. "No, it knocks them out. Send out a message to the Shadow Proclamation too. The Judoon would love to get their hoofs on this one."

"Yes, boss," Johnny nodded. "I'll put Jake on the phone with Addy. He'll give you the location."

"Fine," Rose said and hung up. She turned to Kylie, one hand on her car's door. "I'll reschedule, Ky," she said, apologetically. "Duty calls."

"Go ahead," Kylie nodded.

"Addy, Jake's gonna call with directions," Rose said, getting into the driver's seat as Addy climbed into the passenger's side.

As if on cue, Addy's phone rang. "Hey, Jake," she greeted. "So, where are we meant to be going?"

Rose started up the car and pulled out of the gym's carpark.

Addy listened to Jake carefully. "He says it's near the abandoned zeppelin service station near the Thames," she whispered to Rose. "Jake, we're ten minutes away," she told him.

Rose pressed her foot down on the accelerator, manoeuvring through the traffic as the siren on the car blared loudly.

"Make that five," said Addy, reaching for her seatbelt.

~

"Update," Rose said as she jumped out of her car and immediately accepted a Kevlar vest from Johnny.

"We used the infrared as you instructed," said Johnny as he handed her the earpiece after she had strapped on the vest. "There are at least 7 of the hostiles inside."

"We have Jake. Any idea where Lydia is?" Rose asked as she fitted the earpiece.

"She's prepped," said Johnny. "The rounds are on their way but the guns are this way."

"Alright, listen up," Rose said as she beckoned her team. "Addy, you are staying here and guiding us. The infrared will have picked up their signatures. You are our eyes." Addy nodded quickly. "Jake, you and Lydia are taking the west end. There shouldn't be more than four on that side. Johnny and I will take the east end. We'll regroup in the middle. Hopefully, we avoid any surprises," said Rose. "We are using the shotguns," she added, picking one up. "Aim for the chest. One round is enough to knock them out. But we are being careful and putting another round in. Once we've cleared the warehouse, we use the holding cells to keep them until the Judoon get here. Any questions?"

"Have the Shadow been notified?" Lydia asked.

"Yes, I made the call at once. Captain Mibo is on his way," said Johnny. "They seemed pleased when I mentioned the Llriks."

"Oh, and where's Alex?" asked Rose, not seeing their team medic around.

"He's giving a seminar in Dublin today," said Lydia.

"Fine," Rose nodded. "Have one of the other medics on standby. I'm not anticipating any trouble but Llriks are vicious. Their talons are sharp so don't let one of them get close," she warned.

A black van drew up to them and a middle aged man with greying hair, stepped out of the back. "Commander, I have the rounds you requested," he said eagerly. "Extraordinary request, the BR-4. It is hardly ever used."

"I'll explain later, Malcolm," said Rose with an amused smile. "You didn't have to make the trip you know. One of your techs could have handled it."

"Oh no, I had to come," Malcolm said as his assistant quickly distributed the shot gun rounds between Rose's team. "If you recover any artefacts here, I want to catalogue them personally."

"Gotcha," Rose nodded. She looked at her team. "Are we ready?"

"Yes boss," rang clearly.

"See you in hell," she grinned.

Rose and Johnny carefully tiptoed over to the east entrance of the warehouse. Rose met Johnny's eyes and nodded as he flung the door open. With practised ease, Rose and Johnny entered the warehouse. It was empty and had the lingering smell of oil and grease.

"Boss," Addy's voice came through the earpiece. "You and Johnny have two hostiles coming right at you."

"Left," Rose nodded at Johnny and they stepped ahead carefully.

A loud roar echoed around them as two vicious looking aliens jumped out of the darkness. Rose took aim and fired a round straight into the chest cavity of the Llrik. It let out a howl and collapsed. At her left, Johnny had stunned the Llrik coming towards him.

"Second round," Rose ordered and the two of them fired an extra round at the respective aliens to make sure they would stay down.

Once sure that they weren't moving, Johnny pulled out a grey shell from his pocket and dropped it on the ground. Instantly, the two unconscious aliens were surrounded by a blue energy holding cell. Rose gave a nod and started walking further into the warehouse.

It seemed entirely too quiet for her liking and she could feel the hairs at the back of her neck rising. Sure enough, when they rounded a corner a Llrik jumped out right behind Johnny. "Down, Johnny!" Rose yelled and Johnny dropped to the ground and Rose fired two shots rapidly at the Llrik who went down with a growl.

"You okay?" she asked Johnny.

"Yeah, thanks," said Johnny as he stood up. "Keep moving?"

Rose nodded and the two of them kept moving. "Addy, update?" Rose whispered.

"Jake and Lydia got three down. There's a single heat signature and you are all heading towards it," said Addy.

"Copy that," said Rose as she opened up a door and stepped inside.

"What the...?" gasped Johnny.

"Malcolm's gonna have a field day," whistled Rose as she looked at the wide range of alien artefacts littering the makeshift lab.

A loud roar interrupted their awe at the alien laboratory. Rose turned in the direction of the noise which was followed by two shots from Jake and Lydia. Jake dropped a holding cell around the alien and shouted 'Clear!'

"Good work, you lot," said Rose, lowering the shot gun. "I'll get Malcolm to bring in the recovery team. Jake, Lydia, get all the Llriks in one location," she ordered and then checked her watch. "Captain Mibo will be here soon. Johnny, you and I will meet them."

~

"Earth language, English," said Mibo. "Verify."

"Earth language English verified," answered Rose. "Welcome to Earth, Captain Mibo."

"Thank you, Earth Commander Rose Tyler," said Mibo. "Where are the Llriks?"

"Jake," said Rose and Jake handed her the controls of the big holding cell where they had put all the Llriks. "The holding cell control," said Rose as she gave it to Mibo.

Mibo took the control and examined it sharply. "The matter is at order," he declared. "The Shadow Proclamation thanks you for your cooperation."

"Thank you," said Rose as Mibo ordered his men to load the Llriks into the Judoon carrier. The Llriks would be taken to the Shadow and then stand trial for their crimes in the galaxy.

One by one the Judoon retreated into their ship with the Llriks. Mibo saluted Rose and left last. The doors closed after him and the ship lifted into the air like a hovercraft. Once it was nearly 1000 feet in the air, it took off into the atmosphere.

"Well that's that," said Rose. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearly 3. She was starving and in dire need of a shower.

"The recovery team's here," said Johnny, noticing how tired she seemed. "Malcolm will keep an eye on them."

"Hey, isn't the President's Ball today?" asked Addy, suddenly.

Rose gasped and clapped a hand to her forehead. "Crap," she said. "I forgot. I have to go." She turned to the rest of her team. "Go home, you lot. The reports can wait until tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Rose's dress](http://www.newyorkdress.com/Sherri_Hill/2800SH.html)

Rose stumbled into her flat and tossed her key in the bowl resting on the table next to the door. Her workout bag was tossed aside as she hobbled over to her bathroom, trying to get her shoes off at the same time. Her phone rang shrilly and she hopped around on one leg as she answered it.

"Rose, are you ready yet? The car will be around in ten minutes," came Jackie's voice. "Is your hair done yet?"

"Mum, mum, slow down," said Rose, finally getting her shoes off. "I just got home okay?"

"Just got home?" Jackie all but shrieked. "It was your day off!"

"Yeah, there was an emergency," said Rose. "Look, I'll do my hair and makeup as quickly as I can and try and be at the Ball in under two hours yeah?"

"Fine, I'll send a car around then," said Jackie. "Do you want me to come over and help with your hair?"

"No mum," said Rose, smiling lightly. "You and Dad have to be there on time. I'll just be fashionably late. The press will love that," she added, with an eye roll.

"Oi, hush," chided Jackie. "The press loves you already. Fine, just call if you need help."

"I will," promised Rose. "See you later."

"Bye!"

Rose hung up and headed to her kitchen for food. First food, then shower and then an evening of smiling at a bunch of self-important people. The sacrifices we make, she thought sarcastically.

~

Despite having promised Jackie to be there in two hours, she had only managed to wash and dry her hair and put on her gown in that time. The complicated ball gown that her mum had selected for her wasn't exactly made for quick dressing. It had taken her nearly a half hour just to make sure that all the textural components of the dress were where they were supposed to be.

"That's it, mum," Rose muttered as she huffed at the finished effect. "Last time I let you pick out my dress."

She had been attending an off-planet conference with the Ice Warriors when Jackie had gone shopping for this Ball and Rose had made the mistake of giving Jackie freedom over her wardrobe choice. Even though the final effect was great, it had been an effort to get it to sit right.

Her phone rang and it was Henry, her Dad's chauffeur. "Miss Tyler, the car is here," he said.

"Give me a minute, Henry," said Rose. She quickly threw her makeup into a bag, picked up her shoes and ran down the stairs, holding her dress's skirt up. Henry looked a bit amused and Rose smiled sheepishly at him.

"Emergency at Torchwood," she said as means of explanation. "Take the least bumpy road please, Henry," she requested.

"Of course, Miss Tyler," he agreed with a smile as he closed the door after her.

Once inside the limo, Rose tied her hair into a half-braid with the rest falling around her back. Her hair was longer than it had ever been, brushing the middle of her back but she hadn't been able to bring herself to cut it. Besides, she had discovered that a lot of the alien races around Earth favoured people with longer hair. She was never quite able to understand the logic behind that.

Hair done, she quickly did her makeup to make herself look at least presentable. This was a huge deal for her parents since they were both personal friends of President Harriet Jones. Rose herself liked the President very much and it wouldn't do for her to look tardy at the event of the year. The press would have a field day and Rose would get an earful from her mum that she was keen to avoid.

"We're almost there, Miss Tyler," Henry's voice came over the speaker.

Rose checked her appearance for the final time and put her shoes on. As the car pulled up near the red carpet, she plastered a smile on her face and stepped out of the car. Cameras flashed frantically and it took five years of doing this on a daily basis to stop her from being blinded.

She smiled and waved as she walked past all of them towards the party venue. The Ball was in full swing and Rose slipped in quietly, trying not to be too conspicuous. Her arrival didn't go unnoticed by Jackie Tyler's sharp eyes though, and she approached her daughter at once.

"Oh Rose," she said. "You look beautiful sweetheart."

Judging from the smile on her mum's face, she had definitely been enjoying the champagne. Rose smiled and adjusted her mum's hair absently. "Thanks mum," she said. "You look great."

"Oh psh," Jackie waved off. "Now, where's that father of yours? He owes me a dance."

Rose quickly scanned the room and waved at Pete who seemed to notice the look on Jackie's face since he hurried over quickly to them. "I think that's enough of the champagne, Jacks," he said, taking the glass away from her.

"Pete!" exclaimed Jackie happily, not even noticing that her beloved glass of champagne was gone. "Let's dance!"

Rose stifled a laugh and mouthed 'Have fun!' to him as Jackie dragged him off to the dance floor. She watched her parents twirl with surprising grace despite Jackie's inebriated state and felt a smile blossom on her face. It had taken her a while to accept Pete as Dad but five years had done a lot for her.

Looking back, she supposed it was Tony's birth that well and truly cemented her relationship with Pete. Jackie had been a demanding pregnant woman and Rose remembered the number of nights that she and Pete had spent running all over London to cater to her whims and cravings. Once they even had to fly to Rome in the middle of the night because Jackie was craving the pasta from a restaurant that she and Pete had eaten at four months ago.

Instead of being annoyed or inconvenienced by her mum's cravings, Rose welcomed them because it kept her mind occupied. It was hard to dwell on being separated from the Doctor when you could hardly keep your eyes open after running around Piccadilly Circus to hunt for the tuna sandwich from a small, unnamed cafe at 2 am.

When Tony was born, Rose was still living in the mansion. Jackie had a difficult birth and was on bed rest after Tony was born which meant that Rose and Pete were left caring for the mum and the babe. Somewhere between the constant worry over their health and caring for a new baby, Pete and Rose had come to realise that it didn't matter that this Pete hadn't fathered her; she was his daughter in all the ways that mattered. Things had become a lot smoother after that.

"You look like you need this," said a voice in her ear and a flute of champagne was held out in front of her.

Rose smiled and turned around to grin at the man holding out the glass. "What're you doing here? I thought you were in Dublin," she said, accepting the champagne flute with a grin.

"I finished early and took a zeppelin out," he said, clinking her glass with his. "Heard you had an eventful day."

"Llriks in an abandoned warehouse near the Thames," she said. "They're a warrior race from Andromeda."

"No injuries, I hope?" he inquired.

"Are you asking if we missed you, Alex?" asked Rose with a grin.

"Just doing my job, boss," he said lightly, returning her grin.

"No, no injuries," said Rose. "Fairly straightforward. The warehouse was loaded with artefacts though. It's an early Christmas for Malcolm."

Alex laughed. "Yeah, that makes sense," he nodded.

"So, how are you at the party?" asked Rose, curiously. "Didn't think Torchwood employees got an invite. Lucky bastards," she muttered.

"Your mum didn't tell you?" asked Alex, his brow furrowing. "She invited me."

"My mum invited you?" asked Rose, her eyebrows shooting up.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Funny she didn't tell you."

"Yeah, funny," Rose trailed off. Her gaze roamed the dance floor to look for her mum but caught on a tall, leggy blonde who seemed to be giving Alex the eye. "Hey," she nudged Alex. "That blonde looks like she has a thing for you."

Alex followed her gaze and frowned as the blonde smiled at him. "Yeah, I don't think she's my type," he said.

Rose stared at him incredulously. "What? Gorgeous and blonde isn't your type?" she asked disbelievingly. "Go ask her to dance or something."

"I-I don't know," he said reluctantly.

"Alexander Yates, don't make me push you," said Rose. "Go ask her to dance."

"Who will keep you company?" he asked.

"I have to go and say hello to the President," said Rose. "Go!"

Alex sighed and walked towards the blonde who lit up when she saw him approach her. Rose smiled and left to find Harriet Jones, not noticing the look of longing that crossed Alex's face as he gazed back at her.

Rose approached the group of people around the President. "Hello Madam President," she greeted with a smile.

"My dear Rose, how lovely to see you," said Harriet immediately, taking her hand and leading her away from the group. "Excellent work on those aliens near the Thames today."

Rose smiled in amusement. "I haven't even had the chance to write the report yet, Madam President," she said.

Harriet smiled and tapped her nose. "I wanted to speak to you about an important matter," she said. "Have you heard of a man called James Hetherington?"

"The new banker from America?" asked Rose. "Of course. He's been in every tabloid ever since he arrived in Britain. I think I heard someone on my team tell me that he was named 'The Most Eligible Bachelor' of the year."

"Indeed, yes," nodded Harriet. "He has recently expressed an interest in politics. Specifically regarding the Republic's relationship with Torchwood."

Rose raised her eyebrows. "He's questioning Torchwood?" she asked.

"Oh, he's not opposed to Torchwood," Harriet assured her at once. "I think it is more about the fact that Torchwood is now a planet-wide organisation rather than being limited to the Republic of Britain and Ireland."

"There are reasons for going global," said Rose cautiously, not sure why Harriet was telling her all of this.

"Yes, and I think he should hear them from you," said Harriet and tapped a man on the shoulder. "Mr. Hetherington," she greeted.

The man in his early thirties was dressed impeccably in a traditional tuxedo. Rose could see why he been named as the Most Eligible Bachelor. He was tall, broad-shouldered, had neatly set dark hair and bright green eyes. He smiled widely at Harriet. "Madam President," he greeted in a Boston accent.

"I would like you to meet Commander Rose Tyler of Torchwood," said Harriet.

Rose saw interest flare in James' eyes as he extended his hand. "Commander Tyler."

"Mr. Hetherington," she nodded, returning his handshake.

"I'll leave you to it," said Harriet.

James and Rose smiled at Harriet as she left. James' eyes returned to Rose. "I must say you are not what I expected," he said.

Rose plastered a smile on her face, determined not to punch him until she had heard him out properly. "I'm often not," she said simply.

"Sorry, when Harriet said she would introduce me to Torchwood's Commander, I just expected a tall hulking man," he said, looking a bit apologetic.

"Ah," Rose nodded. "My duties aren't limited to field work, Mr. Hetherington. I also act as Earth's ambassador."

"James, please," he corrected her. "May I call you, Rose?"

"Sure," Rose nodded. "Harriet told me you were displeased that Torchwood is now a global organisation. Considering that you aren't from the Republic originally, I find that view a bit odd."

James laughed. "Yes, I suppose the fact that I am American and complaining about it is a bit odd," he conceded. "With all due respect to the President, I was more concerned about the fact that Torchwood shares alien technology with countries who aren't our allies."

"The technology we share cannot be used in a war, James," said Rose.

"But why include them in the first place?" asked James.

"When aliens invade Earth, they do not do so with a political map," said Rose. "For them, every inhabitant of Earth is a citizen of the planet. Having a global organisation is the most efficient way of ensuring that we can protect everyone."

James looked like he had swallowed a lemon. Rose waited for his rebuttal but James merely forced a smile. "Of course," he nodded tightly. "Thank you for an illuminating chat, Rose."

Rose nodded and with a terse smile, left James' side. She did not like him one bit and mentally added a note to ask Addy to dig some stuff on the bloke. His presence put her off for some reason. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was almost 9. She had been up since six in the morning and hadn't had a moment to sit the whole day.

She sent off a text to her mum saying she was going home and called for Henry to pick her up. When she climbed into the limo, she remembered that she hadn't said goodbye to Alex but expected that he wouldn't want to be disturbed with the blonde.

Henry drove her home quickly and Rose thanked him as she got back to her flat. She had just started to undo her heels when her phone rang.

"Tyler," she answered, tiredly.

"Rose! I have made the most extraordinary discovery!" It was Malcolm.

"Tell me," said Rose, dropping onto her sofa with a sigh.

"I can't," he said. "It is very sensitive and very important."

Rose glanced towards her bedroom where her bed looked very inviting. She sighed again. "I'll see you at Torchwood in twenty minutes, Malcolm."


	3. Chapter 3

Rose hung up on Malcolm and dragged herself to her room. She barely had time to struggle out of her gown and splash some water on her face to get rid of all the makeup. By the time she got dressed in her work clothes and got down to her SUV, it was 11.

Thankfully, the drive was quick and she pulled into Torchwood's carpark just as it was a quarter past 11. She got out of her car and walked over to the main entrance.

"Miss Tyler," George, the night watchman, greeted her with a surprised smile. "I thought you'd be at the President's Ball."

"I was," said Rose as she dropped all metal items into a tray and then walked through the security gate. "Malcolm called me with some emergency."

"Ah yes, he's still in his lab," said George as he gave her stuff back.

"How're the kids doing, George?" asked Rose.

"Ellie's got that scholarship to Cambridge," said George proudly. "Now only if Oscar would buck up..." he sighed

"Don't worry about him, George," smiled Rose. "I bet you anything he'll make a good writer."

"I hope so," said George doubtfully.

"Tell Ellie I said congratulations," said Rose. "I better go and see Malcolm. He called me nearly an hour ago."

"Goodnight, Miss Tyler," George waved and Rose returned the wave.

The Torchwood Tower was an enormous structure; the same one that had been at Canary Wharf in the other universe. Rose had initially had to steel herself every time she stepped into the building but for the past three years or so, it had begun to hurt less. But she still avoided the 'lever room' like the plague. No one asked why she refused to go in there and eventually, it was turned into a supply room.

Malcolm Taylor was the head scientist at Torchwood London. He was extremely enthusiastic about alien artefacts and often headed the recovery teams like he had done today. His labs were underneath the huge Torchwood Tower and required special access that was only granted to a select few.

Rose entered the lift and swiped her access card. The light flashed green and the lift began to descend into the foundations of Torchwood tower. The lights were muted since it was night time, giving the whole place an eerie feel. Rose, who had been in far worse places even after she had been separated from the Doctor, did not pay any attention to it. She swiped her access card at the entrance of the lab and the doors hissed open slowly.

She saw Malcolm sitting at a desk in one of the testing rooms, studying something closely. Rose tapped her knuckles on the glass viewing screen and he looked up and waved at her to come in.

"So, what did you find?" asked Rose.

"Before I tell you," said Malcolm, barely containing his excitement. "What do you know about the Crystals of Avalon?"

"They are a myth," said Rose immediately. "Please tell me you didn't call me here for a history lesson."

"How do you know they were a myth?" asked Malcolm.

"I read the Torchwood archives," said Rose, sitting down in a chair. "It was part of my training as the Commander. Read all the missions Torchwood ever undertook. Successful or otherwise. The one about the Crystals of Avalon is a famous one. They wasted fifty years and nearly 18 million pounds on it."

"And what was their purpose for the mission?" asked Malcolm.

"Malcolm, what is this about?" asked Rose, tiredly. "I've had a very long day."

Malcolm opened up a small box and held it to her. "I think we might have found the purple crystal," he said, his voice almost overwhelmed with excitement.

Rose sprang to attention immediately and took the box. "Oh my god," she whispered as she looked at the sparkling crystal lying inside the box.

"Now you see why I couldn't tell you over the phone?" asked Malcolm.

"Malcolm, do you know what the purple crystal was for?" asked Rose, not moving her eyes from it.

"Endless power source," he said. "I just looked it up."

"Oh," said Rose, gazing at the small crystal. "If this is really the same crystal..."

"Then we might just have solved any fuel crisis our planet might ever face," finished Malcolm.

"Who have you told about this?" asked Rose at once, snapping into Commander mode.

"No one," said Malcolm. "You are the only one who knows. Not even one of my techs know. I don't let them catalogue anything until I have privately examined it first."

"Have any of the other crystals turned up?" asked Rose.

"No, as far as I can tell this is the only one," said Malcolm.

"I wonder how the Llriks got their talons on this one," Rose murmured. She shook her head. "But we are getting ahead of ourselves. We need to verify that this is really the Purple Crystal of Avalon."

"Yes, I have already prepared a series of tests to check," said Malcolm, showing her a list. "Would you like to stay and assist?"

"Would I ever?" asked Rose rhetorically, as she quickly grabbed a lab coat. "Let's begin."

~

Lydia Hartman was always one of the first ones to arrive at Torchwood. As the newest (and the youngest) recruit of the team, it was also her job to bring coffee and buns for the whole team from the bakery across the street every morning. When she entered their team's floor, she found the boss's office door open.

Curious, she tiptoed in and found Rose fast asleep with her head on the desk. Lydia knocked cautiously on the door and Rose shot up from the desk. "Lydia!" she gasped, startled. "Was I asleep?" she asked.

"Yeah. Have you been here all night?" asked Lydia, handing her a cup of coffee.

"Is it morning?" asked Rose, rubbing her eyes.

"Yes," said Lydia.

"Then I have been here all night," she nodded. "I only got up to the office around five. I was in the lab downstairs."

"Why?" asked Lydia.

"Classified for now," said Rose, stretching lightly and wincing when her back cracked. "I'll brief everyone once I'm sure of a few things."

"Right," Lydia nodded. "I'll get started on yesterday's incident report."

Rose waved at her in thanks but looked up as she remembered something. "Hey, send Addy in once she gets here."

"Will do, boss," said Lydia.

Rose sipped the coffee that Lydia had brought her and thought back to the night. She and Malcolm had gone through a series of tests to test the crystal. From charging a phone to playing a television to powering a computer for hours; the crystal hadn't faltered and had continued to power them all.

So far, both she and Malcolm were positive that it was indeed one of the Crystals of Avalon. They would have to test the scope of the things that could be powered by it and later come up with ways to harness all that power. The perfect solution was far from being executed but it was within grasp for now.

Rose picked up the phone and dialled the extension for her Dad's office. "Director Tyler's office," Suzie Costello, his secretary answered.

"Suzie, it's Rose," she said. "Is he in yet?"

"Yes, he just got here," said Suzie.

"Great, I'm coming up to see him," said Rose and hung up. When she came outside her office, she saw Jake and Alex already at their desks. "Morning," she greeted.

"Hey boss, you're here early. Thought you'd be nursing a hangover like our boy Alex here," said Jake as he thumped Alex's shoulder, making him wince and clutch his head.

"I never went home," said Rose and looked at Alex sympathetically. "Thing with the blonde didn't work out, huh?"

"No," Alex shook his head, not meeting her eyes. "I tried to drown my sorrows with tequila. Seemed like a good idea at the time."

Rose laughed. "Hang in there, Dr. Yates," she said. "I have to go and see the Director. Have those reports done, you lot."

They made a sound of acknowledgment as Rose left their floor and took the elevator to the top floor. It opened right in front of Suzie's desk. "Hey Rose, go right in," she said.

"Thanks," Rose smiled and opened the door. "Morning."

"You look like hell," said Pete as a way of greeting. "George tells me you have been here all night."

"Before you go and tell mum on me, I have good reason I promise," said Rose quickly.

Pete smiled in amusement. "Fine, what was it?" she asked.

Rose picked up a pen and paper from his desk and scrawled 'Purple Crystal of Avalon' onto it. Then she passed it to Pete, who read it with wide-eyed amazement. "Are you kidding?" he asked finally.

"Hope not," said Rose with a grin. "Malcolm and I have been running minor tests all night."

"And?" asked Pete, excitement colouring his tone.

"They've all been successful," said Rose. "We need to progress to major stuff and then get started on harnessing it."

"We must summon the department heads," said Pete immediately. "Thankfully it's Monday today."

Rose groaned. Mondays meant after-work staff meetings. And she had been looking forward to an early night today. Pete looked at her sympathetically. "You can go home if you want, Rose. You really look tired," he said. "I'm sure Malcolm can handle it."

"No," she shook her head. "I'll be at the meeting. Hopefully it ends before dinner."

"Just take tomorrow off," said Pete. "Tony's been asking about that trip to the aquarium again."

"I'll think about tomorrow," she said. "And I'll call Tony tonight."

Pete nodded at her and Rose smiled and stood up. "I will have the reports on yesterday's incident by the end of today," she said.

"No rush," he said. "We should focus on this," he added, holding up the piece of paper.

"I suppose I have to wait until the board approves, to brief my team?" she asked.

"Yes, best keep it that way for now," said Pete.

Rose nodded and left his office. After a quick chat with Suzie, Rose returned back to her floor only to find her team engaged in throwing paper planes at each other. "Do I need to send you lot to the principal's office?" she asked and the fighting stopped immediately.

"Sorry, boss," they each said meekly.

Rose rolled her eyes and held back a laugh. Johnny, the only one not participating in the paper plane war looked at her critically. "You look like hell, boss," he said.

"Thanks Johnny," said Rose dryly. "That seems like the general consensus this morning."

"She's been here all night," put in Lydia. "But she can't tell us why yet."

"That's right, so don't ask," said Rose. "I have my reasons. Reports before lunch," she added before going into her office.

She had barely sat down when Addy knocked on her door. "Lydia said you wanted to see me."

"Yes, come in Addy," said Rose. "Close the door."

Addy obeyed and sat down opposite Rose, looking curious. "I'm not in trouble, am I?" she asked, only half-joking.

"No, nothing like that," said Rose, smiling. "I want you do some digging for me. Off the record."

"On what?" asked Addy.

"James Hetherington," said Rose.

"The hot shot banker with a jaw that can cut diamonds?" asked Addy. "Sorry," she added when Rose raised her eyebrows.

"Yes, him," Rose nodded, trying not to smile.

"Something particular I am looking for?" she asked.

"Anything that doesn't quite fit," said Rose. "It's not too urgent. More about quality than speed really."

"Understood," said Addy.

"Oh and Addy," Rose said when she stood up to leave. "Keep this between us for now."

"Got it, boss," she nodded and left.

Rose spent the rest of the day answering a pile of emails ranging from a peace conference in Hague to funding an artefact dig in Cambodia. She managed to have a big lunch and a day with virtually no alien disturbances. There were a few skirmishes but they were minor ones dealt with by other field teams.

At five, she stepped out of her office to find her team still at work. Even after the reports were done, there was still a lot of studying to be done. Rose's team were the elite and were expected to be better than the others. This meant they had to study up on more alien cultures, learn how to deal with hostile aliens and how to handle alien weapons. Rose felt a proud smile on her face as she watched them work. She cleared her throat.

"It's five," she said. "Off to home with you lot."

"Oh no, we can stay for a while. Aliens never attack on a schedule," said Johnny.

"Johnny, you have a wife and two toddlers at home," said Rose. "Go on, get home."

"I don't have a wife or children," said Lydia cheekily when Rose's eyes fell on her.

"Your husband will be home by now. Have an early night with him," said Rose, shooing her out.

"Don't have to throw me out, boss" said Jake. "I'm gone."

Rose smiled approvingly and looked pointedly at Alex. "I don't have a wife or a husband," he said.

"So go find one," said Rose, ushering him out. "Addy?"

"I'm almost done," she said. "And then I'll go home, I promise."

Rose nodded. "I have to go to the staff meeting," she said. "I want you gone in the next ten minutes, you hear?"

"Aye, aye," Addy nodded, continuing to type rapidly at her keyboard.

Rose shook her head fondly and took the lift to go to the boardroom. She met Pete in the hallway who smiled at her. "Nervous?" he asked her.

"A bit yeah," she nodded. "But I know it's a good thing and it is important to get it started."

"Good luck," said Pete as they entered the boardroom.

Rose smiled and took her usual place at the table. Slowly, other team leaders and department heads trickled in and took their places. Pete waited until everyone was there and then stood up. "Evening," he said. "Let's get to it quickly. First up, we have our Commander with something very important."

Rose stood up and nodded at Malcolm. "Ladies and Gentlemen," she began as she took the box from Malcolm and braced herself to say the cheesiest line she had ever said. "We have made the discovery of the century."


	4. Chapter 4

_"Evening," Pete said. "Let's get to it quickly. First up, we have our Commander with something very important."_

_Rose stood up and nodded at Malcolm. "Ladies and Gentlemen," she began as she took the box from Malcolm and braced herself to say the cheesiest line she had ever said. "We have made the discovery of the century."_

After the meeting Rose sat in the boardroom alone, contemplating everything that had passed. Things had gone better than expected. Almost everyone was familiar with the myth of the Crystals of Avalon. To hear that one of them had actually been discovered had been met with great approval.

There were the usual questions: when would it be ready for use on a larger scale, were they going to share it with the rest of the world, how much money would be required to start the project and so on. There were also the usual disagreements. People who wanted the crystal to be used only by the Republic, people who wanted to wait until the other power sources had been depleted so that they could market this at a higher cost to the people. Then there were the ones who wanted the crystal to never see the light of the day.

Rose rubbed her head, trying to ward off the headache. This was precisely why she hated administrators. Too much talk and not enough action. Give her a field agent or a scientist any day. A lot simpler to deal with and a lot more straightforward too. No hidden agendas unlike the administrators. Sometimes she could see why the Doctor never hung around for cleanup jobs. There was just no pleasing everyone.

She glanced at her watch and saw it was nearly 9. So much for finishing before dinnertime. She really ought to allow herself more free time. As quickly as that thought had entered her mind, she snorted to herself. As if that would ever happen. Besides she liked being busy.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped. "Relax, it's just me," said Pete, looking at her worriedly. "Jacks called. She wants you to come home for a late supper."

Rose groaned and rubbed her eyes. "Can't you just tell her I'm tired?" she asked pleadingly.

"That is exactly why she asked," said Pete. "It will do you good, Rose. Tony will like to see you as well."

"It's past his bedtime," said Rose but stood up reluctantly. "Fine, I'll stop by for a quick supper and then drive home."

"Your old room is still there, remember?" he asked as they headed towards the elevator together.

"Nah, better go home," she said. Pete conceded with a shrug since he knew she wouldn't budge.

The drive to the Tyler Mansion was quiet. Rose was driving her SUV behind Pete's chauffeur driven car, trying not to fall asleep at the wheel. Thankfully, she pulled into the mansion's driveway without causing any incident.

She braced herself for her mother's berating tone as she entered the mansion. She looked like hell, she knew. She had been told as much by practically everyone at Torchwood today. Sure enough, when she stepped into the kitchen, Jackie immediately rounded on her.

"Look at the state of you, Rose," she said, clucking her tongue in disapproval. "Honestly, you work yourself to the ground. Gonna wear yourself out one of these days."

"I'm fine, mum," said Rose, trying to sound reassuring but the effect was ruined by a tired yawn that suddenly escaped her mouth.

Jackie tsk-tsked again and ushered her towards the dining room. "Hot meal and bed is what you need," she said. "I'll heat up some soup for you and then off to bed you go, missy."

Rose knew she would be able to argue better on a fuller stomach, so she trudged quietly over to the dining table and sat down in her usual chair. Trying in vain to keep her eyes open, she pulled out her phone and decided to check her emails.

"None of that," said Jackie, snatching the phone out of her hand. "Eat up," she added, placing a bowl of hot onion soup in front of her.

"Mum, give that back," protested Rose.

"Not until you finish your supper," snapped Jackie, and Rose was inexplicably reminded of being a teenager again. Sulking at the thought of how some things never changed, she moodily began to eat the soup in front of her. "There now," Jackie said in an approving tone.

Rose wanted to roll her eyes. She was a grown woman who was perfectly capable of looking after herself. But she resisted the urge, since she knew it would hurt her mum. Rose had been almost sure that Tony's birth would make Jackie ease up on coddling her and focus on him instead. The actual result was quite the opposite; Jackie's mothering skills had only intensified towards both of her children.

Some days, Rose wondered if it was because her mum was glad that she was on Earth, rather than God-knows-where and God-knows-when with the Doctor. Then she would be filled with guilt because she knew very well that she would leave her whole life behind if it meant she could go back to her life with the Doctor.

"Smells good, Jacks," Pete said as he came into the dining room, changed out of his work clothes.

Jackie quickly placed a bowl of hot soup in front of him. There was a full staff of people working at the mansion but Jackie insisted on doing some things herself. Rose remembered how baffled the staff had been at first when their mistress had come back from her supposed 'death' as a completely changed woman. Lucy from the kitchen could be heard saying that the resulting amnesia from the Cybermen attack must have mellowed her up.

"So, the meeting went well," said Pete to Rose, breaking the silence punctuated only by the clinking of cutlery on china.

Rose shrugged noncommittally. "Could have been worse," she said honestly. She knew better than anyone that the human race was a flawed one due to how unpredictable they were. What was one day a triumph could very well turn into a war the next day.

"What's this about then?" asked Jackie curiously.

"Top secret, love," said Pete apologetically. He turned to Rose. "You can brief your team whenever you want, Rose."

"Speaking of my team," said Rose, now that she had enough food in her system to argue. "Did you invite Alex to the President's Ball?" she asked her mum.

Jackie did not bother denying it. "What of it?" she asked. "He's a nice enough lad."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Mum, I thought we talked about this after the fiasco that was Daniel Jones," she said.

"It wouldn't hurt you if you went out with someone, you know," said Jackie. "Find a nice boy and settle down." Rose gritted her teeth and resisted the urge to snap back. Her mum meant well, she knew. But sometimes she just needed to lay off. "Honestly, it's just because I want you to be happy."

Looking back, Rose would blame fatigue, excitement and a whole array of excuses for the words that came out of her mouth. "I am happy," she said, in a voice that was louder than usual. Apart from being loud, Rose realised that she truly meant it too. The sudden realisation gave her a boost to say the next thing that barrelled its way out. "I have finally made something of myself. Not to sound narcissistic, but I have done hell of a lot more than I expected of myself. I have made a whole new life for myself; one that I am damn proud of and I won't let you tarnish that just because you think I need to be settled down to be happy."

Breathing heavily, Rose met the stricken gaze of her parents. She had been shouting and hadn't even realised it. She pushed away the soup, her appetite leaving her. "I'm going home," she muttered, standing up.

"Rose..." Jackie said, sounding close to tears.

Rose quickly picked up her jacket and avoided her gaze. "I'll call you later, mum. I'm tired and it has just been a long couple of days," she said. "But I did mean what I said," she said slowly, still avoiding their gaze. "I really am happy. I have achieved so many things in these past five years. But I know they have been good because I have done them on my own terms."

She raised her gaze finally and gave a nod towards them. "Just don't push me towards something just because you think it is what I should want," she said, her voice so soft it was almost begging.

"Oh Rose," said Jackie, running to her daughter and catching her hug. "Shh, I'm sorry, okay?"

Rose sniffed lightly as she patted her mum's back. "It's alright, mum. It really is. I'm sorry too," she said.

"You wanna stay the night?" asked Jackie, still holding her in the hug.

"No, I should go home," said Rose. "But I will come around tomorrow to take Tony to the aquarium. I need a day off from work."

Jackie broke the hug and nodded with a quick smile. "Okay, sweetheart," she said, wiping her eyes quickly. "Drive safe then."

Rose nodded and then waved at Pete who waved back, his face understanding. "Goodnight, Rose," he said.

"Goodnight," she smiled and then left the mansion. Driving back to her own flat, she mulled over her outburst. Every word that she had said was true. She really was happy here. She hadn't expected to be, really. Did she still miss the Doctor? Yes, with every fibre of her being. Would she go away with him if an opportunity presented itself? Without a doubt.

But she could never consider her life here as some sort of a sentence away from him. She had adapted, become someone that the Doctor could be proud of. Defender of the Earth, that was her. He had to have known that she was capable of becoming the Defender; he had been the one to call her that in the first place. Perhaps it was because he knew her better than she knew herself, she thought with a small nostalgic smile as she arrived at her building.

Parking her car in its usual spot, she took the lift to her floor. It was nearly midnight and the building was quiet. The lift dinged as the doors opened on her floor. There was only one other flat on the floor apart from her own. Judging from the silence down the hallway, Emma must be on one of her business trips again.

Rose sighed as she reached her own door. The newspaper was still on her doorstep since she hadn't been here this morning. She picked it up and unlocked the door to her flat. It was dark in her flat and as she switched on the living room light, her eyes caught on the headline of the newspaper.

****

Tyler Heiress Shines at the President's Ball

Her lips quirked as she saw the picture underneath it. It must have been taken when she was navigating the paparazzi near the red carpet. She was looking over her shoulder and smiling in the distance when the picture had been snapped. It was a very flattering picture, she had to admit reluctantly. With a sigh, she tossed the newspaper away. 

She was tired, and physically and emotionally drained. All she needed right now was sleep. With that thought, she shuffled over to her bedroom and without even taking her shoes or jacket off, she fell on top of her covers and welcomed sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

In retrospect, Rose realised that it was too much to ask that for once, she got a quiet and uneventful day with her beloved baby brother. The day had actually started out quite well. She had awoken at nine and finally rid herself of her day old clothes and taken a long bath.

After a proper English fry-up (that she had cooked all by herself while singing along to the Beatles at the top of her lungs) she had dressed for a nice day out. Her drive to the mansion had been uneventful; she even managed to avoid rush hour traffic.

Walking into the wide foyer of the Tyler Mansion, she had been made to stop by a familiar, piping voice.

"Stop in the name of Torchwood!"

Rose had smiled to herself before raising her hands to the side and turning around to stare at her brother. "You'll never take me alive, Earthling," she said in her best "alien villain" voice and ran towards him making absurd growling noises.

She had been rewarded with uncontrollable laughter from him as she scooped his tiny frame up and carried him to the kitchen. He had quickly made himself comfortable in her embrace, speaking at a million miles an hour.

"Mum said you are finally taking me to the aquarium today. That is so cool. Lizzie said that they have these new manatees that they have brought in and they're super awesome," he rambled on.

Lizzie, or Elizabeth Melrose, was Tony's tutor. Yes, her dear baby brother had a tutor simply because, well, he was a genius. He had been articulate in his speech ever since he had learned to talk and at the age of 2, had solved the equations from Rose's quantum physics textbook when she had left her books lying around.

After that, it had just been a flurry of tests and aptitude exams that proclaimed firmly that Anthony Tyler, was in fact, a certified genius. As he grew older, he developed a penchant for learning facts and figures and telling them to everyone he ever met.

Which was what Rose was currently being subjected to. "Did you know that the myth of the mermaids came from the manatees? Sailors at sea would confuse the manatees for women who were..."

"Right, stop rambling," chided Jackie as Tony and Rose came into the kitchen. "Tony, have you tidied up your books?"

"Yes mum," said Tony brightly. "Can Rose and I go now?"

Jackie checked his appearance and tried to flatten his mess of a blonde hair. "You behave yourself, you hear me young man?" she asked in her best scary-mum voice.

"Yes mum," he said meekly, though his hazel eyes shone with mischief. "I solemnly swear that I will behave myself."

Jackie didn't get the reference but Rose did, and did her best to swallow her laughter. "I'll have him home by tea," she said instead.

"Don't let him have too much sugar," Jackie reminded.

"Wouldn't dream of it," winked Rose as she set Tony down and then extended her hand. "Come on."

Tony grinned up at her as he grasped her fingers tightly and waved at their mum. "Bye mummy," he said.

"Oh bye-bye, my sweet boy," said Jackie, almost melting.

Rose waited until they were out of earshot to give him an impressed look. "Nice touch with the 'mummy'," she said as they headed towards her car.

"Did you know that nine times out of ten, a term of endearment will soften future indiscretions?" he asked.

"You just made that up," said Rose as she lifted him into the car seat and started buckling him. Thankfully, the laws in this world only required an extra harness to be worn by children rather than the monstrosity that looked like it had been designed by NASA that Rose remembered from her old universe.

"I did not make that up," he protested indignantly. "It is a valid observation."

Rose shook her head as she got into the driver's seat. What five year old used words like 'endearment', 'indiscretions' and 'valid observations' in everyday conversations? Her brother, that's who.

The drive to the aquarium involved Tony keeping up a running commentary about everything from the etymological root of the word aquarium to the legends of manatees and mermaids. Rose always found his chatter rather comforting, unlike a lot of other people who didn't know quite what to make of the unusually intelligent young boy. But then again, Rose had first-hand experience in dealing with a rambling genius.

"Okay, ground rules for today," said Rose when Tony paused for breath. "Stick close to me. No wandering off. And most importantly?"

"Don't tell mum about all the sugar you give me?" he guessed with a bright smile.

Rose winked at him through the rear view mirror. "Good boy," she smiled. "We're here."

It was a pleasant enough day even though they were going to be indoors for the most part. The aquarium was not too full since it was a Tuesday. Rose asked Tony if he wanted a guided tour but her brother refused. Instead, he chose to memorise the information plaque in front of each and every specimen in the aquarium. Rose let him, knowing that he would remember the facts better than any tour guide could.

They had lunch in a restaurant predictably called 'Under the Sea'. Halfway through their 'berry mermaid delight', Rose's phone chirped. Making a face, Rose checked the ID only to find that it was Addy calling. Knowing that it would be Johnny who would usually call in emergencies, Rose was a bit confused as to why Addy was calling.

"Addy?" she answered.

"Hey boss," she said, sounding a bit nervous. "I know it's your day off but..."

"It's okay, Addy," said Rose. "What is it?"

"You know that thing you asked me to research?" she asked, her voice becoming more and more nervous as she continued.

"What of it?" asked Rose. "Is everything alright?"

"No," answered Addy. "It's something that you need to see at once."

Rose bit the inside of her cheek and glanced at Tony who was happily trying to balance a spoon on his nose, not caring that the ice cream was dripping onto his shirt. She sighed. "I have to drop Tony off before I come to the office," she said, gutted that her time with her brother would be cut off.

"I'm not in the office," said Addy. "I had to come home for a new software program. Can you just meet me here?"

"Fine, I'll drop Tony home and see you in a half hour," she said.

"Right thanks," said Addy and hung up.

Rose sighed and met Tony's eyes. His smile fell. "Do you have to go to work?" he asked.

"Sorry Tony," said Rose. "Something's come up."

"Can't Daddy get someone else to do it?" he asked, turning his beseeching gaze on her.

Rose waved for the check and shook her head. "Sorry darling," she said. "It's important." Tony pouted and crossed his arms, glaring at the bowl of melted ice cream while Rose paid the bill and asked for a bunch of facial tissues from their waitress. "I'm sorry, Tony," said Rose again as she started to clean his face up. "You know I wouldn't go if it wasn't urgent."

He stopped glaring and nodded meekly. "Can we do the rest of the tour next week?" he asked.

"I promise," she said. "Come on."

Luck was on their side and they got to the Tyler mansion in record time. Rose had time only to drop him off and kiss him goodbye before rushing off to Addy's house. Despite being single, Addy owned a big house in the suburbs that she had inherited from her grandmother.

Rose pulled into the driveway of the small, two-storey house and walked up to the front door. She knocked and waited for the door to open. Her brow furrowed when the door stayed close. She went to knock again but noticed that all the curtains were closed and it was entirely too quiet. Addy had a habit of blasting eardrum-numbing music at all times. Especially when she was working.

Rose tried the handle and was surprised when it turned easily. Drawing out her gun and silently being thankful that she had been armed when she left this morning, Rose entered through Addy's front door. It was cool inside the house and it was quiet enough that she could hear the big grandfather clock in the living room ticking loudly.

A quick glance in the living room told her it was empty. She moved down the hall to the kitchen and dining room, to find them empty as well. Rose quietly debated whether to go upstairs and search the bedrooms or search the study first.

Addy usually did all her work in her study so Rose headed over there. The door was slightly ajar but when Rose pushed it open, it was empty too. Rose let out a slight huff of frustration. The study was undisturbed, with not a paper out of place. She closed the door after her and went upstairs, taking care to tread softly and not cause any noise.

The first bedroom was empty but the door to the second door was slightly open. Rose peered through the gap and saw Addy sitting on the floor, her hands and legs bound and a tape across her mouth. Gasping, Rose ran into the room and Addy shook her head furiously.

Rose was confused by the reaction for a single moment before she felt a sharp blow at the back of her head and she fell to the floor, unconscious. When she came to, she realised that her arms were bound at her back with metal handcuffs and her ankles were tied with string, just like Addy. But her mouth was not taped. Rose blinked as James Hetherington's face swam into focus.

"Thank you for joining us finally, Earth Commander Tyler," he said, his tone slightly mocking.

"What the hell are you doing?" asked Rose, stalling for time while she took stock of the situation. Her gun was in James' hand but she noted with relief that he hadn't bothered to search the rest of her. Which meant that he couldn't have known about the other weapons she had on her.

Bad news was that he was pointing the gun at Addy's head who was trying to stay brave but Rose could see tear tracks down her face. Rose gave her an encouraging look before meeting James' gaze steadily.

James' green eyes seemed to have a slightly maddened look in them and he looked slightly...reptilian. Not overtly, but his skin was slightly green and his features elongated. "The hell that is going on," he said, answering her question. "Is that I discovered that you set your little pet to meddle in things that were none of your business." He nudged Addy's temple with the gun and Addy whimpered silently.

"Let her go," said Rose calmly. "You are obviously not of this planet. We can process whatever you require through official channels. Holding two Torchwood Agents hostage is going to get you nowhere."

He laughed harshly. "Do you want me to believe that if I let you go now, you wouldn't arrest me at the first chance you got?" he demanded incredulously.

"Not if you had good reason for it," said Rose, in the same calm voice. "Look, Torchwood's earlier reputation wasn't exactly ideal but things have changed in the past few years."

"Ever since you took over, you mean," he said. "Oh yes, I have been keeping track of you Commander Tyler. Everyone thought that you rose through the ranks so quickly because your Daddy was the Director of Torchwood but you proved them wrong, didn't you?"

"You have done your homework about me," she said. "I'm impressed."

He nodded, his intense gaze on her. "And you were doing your homework on me," he said with a significant glance towards Addy. "I was impressed by her skills. She got to my secrets faster than anyone."

"She is the best," said Rose, trying to infuse some confidence into Addy. "But she hasn't had a chance to tell me what she discovered."

"So, should I just kill her then?" he asked, aiming for Addy's head.

"No," said Rose, forcing herself not to shout. She was surprised at how even her voice sounded. "I think I want to know what you found out."

James and Addy looked equally surprised at that. Rose wondered what on Earth made her say that. She sounded like...no, now was not the time.

"Go ahead," James told Addy, ripping the tape off her mouth. "Tell your boss what you found."

"Boss, I'm sorry," Addy began.

"It's okay, Addy," said Rose soothingly. "Just tell me what you found."

Addy took a steadying breath and nodded. "I had to dig deep, like he said. It was very difficult. According to the official records, James Hetherington was an orphan at the age of 12 and went through boarding schools and such until he reached adulthood. But when I researched deeper, I found out that every record from his schools and colleges was falsified. He did not exist until five years ago."

Rose turned her gaze back on James. "So, you came to Earth and integrated yourself into the system. Many aliens do that. We have even helped a few do that ourselves. I don't understand why you think you need to hold us at gunpoint to protect that secret," she said evenly.

James laughed sarcastically. "You haven't made the connection yet, Commander," he said. "I came to this wretched planet five years ago, the same time as you did. The same way as you did."

Rose's eyes went wide and for the first time, fear flashed across her face. "What?" she asked.

"I was at the other Torchwood, being tortured for being an alien, when the Daleks and Cybermen went to war," he said, the madness in his eyes nearing derangement. "And then you and the Time Lord were there."

Rose flinched at the mention of the Doctor but James didn't notice. She could feel Addy's questioning gaze on her but she avoided it.

"When the Daleks and Cybermen started to get sucked back into the void, I escaped and found a device that I thought was a teleport. Instead, it just brought me to a different Earth. I tried to go back but it stopped working. And I was trapped here," he ranted. "I am not even in the same universe anymore. Do you know that my planet in this universe is being destroyed by the Ice Age?" he demanded, sounding near hysterical.

"I still don't understand what you plan to do," said Rose, her voice nowhere near as calm as before. James or the alien (whatever he was) was losing his grip on sanity very, very quickly. There was no telling what he would do.

He laughed bitterly. "You still don't get it," he said, shaking his head. He stood up and walked up to Rose. "After I realised that I was trapped on this primitive world forever, my sole focus turned to you, Commander," he said, kneeling in front of her. He ran the cold tip of the gun over her cheek. "And now, I finally get to kill you," he said, his voice hardening as he rested the gun against her head. "Say goodbye to your world, Commander Rose Tyler. Defender of the Earth."


	6. Chapter 6

"When the Daleks and Cybermen started to get sucked back into the void, I escaped and found a device that I thought was a teleport. Instead, it just brought me to a different Earth. I tried to go back but it stopped working. And I was trapped here," he ranted. "I am not even in the same universe anymore. Do you know that my planet in this universe is being destroyed by the Ice Age?" he demanded, sounding near hysterical.

"I still don't understand what you plan to do," said Rose, her voice nowhere near as calm as before. James or the alien (whatever he was) was losing his grip on sanity very, very quickly. There was no telling what he would do.

The metal cuff on her right hand was almost loose by then but she tried not to move too much and alert him.

He laughed bitterly. "You still don't get it," he said, shaking his head. He stood up and walked up to Rose. "After I realised that I was trapped on this primitive world forever, my sole focus turned to you, Commander," he said, kneeling in front of her. He ran the cold tip of the gun over her cheek. "And now, I finally get to kill you," he said, his voice hardening as he rested the gun against her head. "Say goodbye to your world, Commander Rose Tyler. Defender of the Earth."

The cuffs clicked open and Rose grabbed James' hand that held the gun and twisted it away from herself. The shot intended for her was blasted into Addy's bedroom ceiling. Addy screamed loudly as Rose brought up her other hand to punch James' jaw.

James yelled in pain and Rose tried to use it to her advantage to take the gun off him. But her hands were too slippery and the gun fell to the floor and James' flailing limbs sent it skidding away. Rose wished dearly that her legs were free so she could kick him or even stand up but she dare not take his eyes off him.

He had recovered from the punch she had delivered before and was now trying to pin her to the floor with his hands around her neck. Rose was struggling with all her might but he was stronger and had the full use of all his limbs. His fingers started tightening around her throat and Rose started to feel faint. She gave up trying to get his hands off her throat and searched her belt for her knife. It took her a moment to find the familiar handle and she brought it up to slash James across the face.

James yelled in pain at the deep cut that her knife had made on his cheek. Rose pushed him off her and rolled away, trying to reclaim air into her lungs while simultaneously trying to cut the bonds around her legs. She could hear James still screaming pain as he rolled on the floor, clutching his face. She must have cut him pretty deep since he appeared to be bleeding quite profusely.

Rose finally broke through the ties binding her legs and got to her feet shakily. She reached for her second gun that was strapped to her ankle and pointed it at James who was now kneeling on the floor. "Hands where I can see them," she said, still a bit out of breath.

"Shoot me then," he panted, his eyes calmer than ever.

"I'm not going to shoot," Rose said, regaining some of her earlier calm. "Just surrender now and we can get help for that cut."

He laughed without humour. "You are not going to shoot?" he asked, sounding amused. "Fine," his voice hardened as he pointed her gun at her.

Rose's stance tensed as she realised that he had found the gun that had skidded off before. No wonder he was so calm. "Don't be foolish, James," she said.

"I wonder if you can shoot me before I shoot you?" he wondered, ignoring her words. "Shall we put it to the test?"

"I really don't want to shoot you, James," Rose said, forcing herself to be calm. "But left no choice..." she left the words unsaid.

"Oh, now we are getting somewhere," James said triumphantly. "Tell me, Commander Tyler..." he said getting to his feet slowly. "What if instead of shooting you, I shoot your little pet busybody?" he asked, aiming the gun at Addy.

Addy whimpered in fear and Rose's grip on her gun tightened. "Leave her alone," she said coldly.

James laughed as he kept the gun aimed at Addy. "Your species fascinates me, Commander," he said speculatively. "You fight wars over trivial issues, you have hidden agendas for practically everything and at the end, you care for nothing but yourselves. Even with an unlimited power source, you still squabble over petty matters." He laughed and shook his head. "But enough talk. Time for Agent Oshodi to join whatever afterlife your species believes in."

In a split second, Rose noticed James getting ready to squeeze the trigger. His finger moved just a fraction and...

A loud shot rang through the air and Addy screamed loudly. Rose calmly lowered her gun and with heavy steps walked over to where James' body lay. Her bullet had hit him right between the eyes, killing him instantly. His eyes were still wide open, his cruel smile still in place.

Moving almost mechanically, Rose kicked his gun away and then checked to see if he was really dead. Finding no signs of life, she began to untie Addy who was still shaking badly. Once Addy was loose, Rose dialled Johnny and then her Dad, telling them in short, clipped sentences what had happened.

"They are on their way," Rose told Addy who was staring at James' body in absolute horror. "It's okay, Addy. He's dead. He can't hurt you anymore."

Addy winced at her words but nodded slowly. "H-how did you get loose?" she asked finally.

Instead of answering, Rose picked up the handcuffs still hanging from her left wrist. There, carved into the metal were the words Bad Wolf Manufacturing.

~

Everything was a blur after that. Her team was frantic as was her Dad. Rose eventually tuned out the sound around her. She had given her statement, promised to have a report by tomorrow and been given a clean bill of health. All she wanted to do was get away from everyone right at this moment.

"Rose?" It was Alex. "Are you alright?"

"M'fine," she shrugged. "Are we done here? I want to go home."

"Maybe you should come home with me," said Pete, who had been listening in.

"No," answered Rose. She turned to Alex. "Look after Addy and ask her to take tomorrow off."

Alex opened his mouth to protest but Rose was already moving towards her car. She could see the concern and worry on everyone's face as she started up her car but she was in no state to reassure anyone. She needed to get away.

~

The phone rang shrilly and the woman sighed as she picked it up. "Hello?"

"Miss Johnson, your alarm at the gym just tripped. Do you want us to send security personnel to check?"

"No," said Kylie. "I shall see for myself."

She hung up and pursed her lips in thought. It was nearly 1 am. Who would be in the gym at this hour? She quickly grabbed a jacket and decided to drive down herself.

Entering her gym, she found it quiet and dark. She was about to leave when she heard a grunt. She moved through cautiously and saw only one light switched on right above the punching bag. Rose Tyler was currently pounding the holy hell out of the said punching bag with her bare fists.

"Tyler!" Kylie snapped. "What on Earth are you doing?" she demanded, holding the punching bag away from her.

"Leave me alone, Kylie," she said flatly.

Kylie peered at her through the darkness and almost gasped. Rose Tyler looked nothing like her usual cool and collected self. Her blonde hair was straggly and unkempt, her eyes were puffy and red and her fists were red and raw from when she had been punching the bag.

"Tyler, what is the matter with you?" Kylie demanded, her voice all sharp and reprimanding. "Why did you think it necessary to break into my gym at 1 in the morning?"

"Couldn't sleep," she shrugged, wiping her face on her arms. "Thought I'd vent my frustration."

"What happened?" Kylie asked, her voice still sharp yet not as reprimanding as before.

"I killed...no, I executed, someone today," she confessed, dropping her hands at her side and meeting Kylie's gaze.

A lesser person would have flinched at her gaze. As it was Kylie met her eyes steadily. "Explain," was all she said.

"There was a hostage situation," said Rose. "He was holding Addy and me at gunpoint."

"Did you give him a chance?" Kylie asked in an even tone.

Rose nodded. "He refused to take it. He...he was going to kill Addy. His gun was pointed at her."

"Then you didn't execute anyone," said Kylie in a matter of fact tone. "You did your job."

"I killed him in cold blood," snapped Rose, tears gathering in her eyes.

Kylie glared at her. "That is utter crap and you know that, Tyler," she snapped. "You are a soldier. Start acting like one."

"I am NOT a soldier," Rose yelled, glaring angrily at Kylie.

"Yes you are and the sooner you accept it, the easier it will be," said Kylie, refusing to back down. "Because the next time you hesitate to kill someone, it will be your body lying on the floor." Rose paused and slowly unclenched her fists. They were going to be badly bruised tomorrow. Kylie watched her calm down and took a deep breath. "I know you don't like killing anyone, Tyler," she said in a calmer voice. "But it is your job and you have people relying on you."

"I keep replaying the scene over and over in my head," confessed Rose in a low voice. "What if I just imagined his finger moving on the trigger?"

"You are second guessing yourself," said Kylie, sounding a bit reprimanding again.

"I can't help it," Rose snapped. _Your species fascinates me, Commander. You fight wars over trivial issues, you have hidden agendas for practically everything and at the end, you care for nothing but yourselves. Even with an unlimited power source, you still squabble over petty matters. But enough talk. Time for Agent Oshodi to join whatever afterlife your species believes in._

"Tough," snapped Kylie, bringing her back to reality. "Soldiers don't have the luxury of doubting their decisions. Especially not if you are the Commander."

Rose snorted humourlessly. "You talk like a soldier yourself," she said.

"Who says I'm not?" demanded Kylie. "My father was a Brigadier in the army and my older sister was a scientist who worked with extraterrestrial organisations all over the world. I have been around soldiers all my life."

Rose stared at her. "What happened?" she asked, curious in spite herself.

"They died," said Kylie shortly. "In the Cyber war. I was barely out of secondary school. I cancelled my university plans and joined Torchwood's programme to become a trainer."

"I'm sorry," said Rose. "I didn't know."

Kylie nodded curtly. "I don't broadcast it," she said. "I even changed my last name because they were both far too famous for me to be inconspicuous."

"Your last name isn't Johnson?" Rose asked in surprise.

Kylie smiled wryly. "It's Lethbridge-Stewart. Not very convenient if you want to lay low. Even Kate, when she was alive, only used 'Stewart'."

Rose gave a watery smile. "Thanks for all of this, Ky," she said. "You are right. I am a soldier. And there are people depending on me. I just have to stop doubting myself and not repeat that scene in my he..." Rose trailed off and her eyes widened in horror.

_Your species fascinates me, Commander. You fight wars over trivial issues, you have hidden agendas for practically everything and at the end, you care for nothing but yourselves. Even with an unlimited power source, you still squabble over petty matters._

_Even with an unlimited power source, you still squabble over petty matters._

_Unlimited power source..._

"I have to go," said Rose immediately. "At once."

If she was surprised by the sudden declaration, Kylie did not show it. "Go on then," she nodded. "And I want you bright and early here in two days for your next session. The last one was cut short, remember?"

Rose nodded hastily as she gathered up her jacket and ran to her car. She had to get to Torchwood. It might already be too late.


	7. Chapter 7

The car tires screeched loudly as they came to a halt outside Torchwood. Rose half stumbled, half jumped from the car and ran inside Torchwood Tower.

"Miss Tyler?" George asked in surprise but Rose was in too much of a hurry to stop for a chat.

"Sorry, George, I have to go," she said.

George seemed to be slightly taken aback at her abrupt manner but today's events had been discussed all over Torchwood, including Rose's involvement in them. He let her pass, still pondering on her understandably erratic behaviour.

Rose strode over to the elevator in quick steps and swiped her access card to take her to the lab downstairs. Her watch told her that it was nearly 3 am and she was unsurprised when the elevator doors opened to an empty lab. Not even Malcolm was around.

She hurried into the lab and swiped her access card to open the big vault that contained the catalogued artefacts. Right in the heart of the vault was a small, powerful safe. Rose had to enter several codes and scan her retina for it to open. Her hands were nearly shaking as she did that but relief seized her when the safe opened and she saw that the Purple Crystal of Avalon was resting safely inside.

She sat down next to the safe, just breathing deeply. When James had mentioned an unlimited power supply, she had been afraid that he had stolen the crystal. But the crystal was safe. Still a bit shaky, she quickly locked the safe up.

The most obvious question, of course, was how James had known about it. It was a closely guarded secret. Apart from her, Malcolm and Pete, only the Torchwood department heads and board members knew of it. None of them would have leaked the secret. At least, she didn't think they would have.

She stood up slowly and left the vault, locking it behind her. She needed to stop and think for a bit. If the news of the crystal had got out, then there was a possibility of a leak in Torchwood's hierarchy. Rose knew she had to tread very careful with those suspicions. Trust no one, was the first thing she had taught herself.

Because while she was happy to work for Torchwood, she had never forgotten that she was in this universe because of Torchwood in the first place. She would never be naive enough to trust them completely.

The Doctor's words rang clearly through her mind. "It's not so far off your world. This place is only parallel."

She briefly considered telling Pete but she wanted to keep him out of this as much as possible. If there was a traitor at Torchwood, she had to find them herself. But she could not do this on her own. It was time to call for help.

She went back to her car and then dialled the number slowly. There were two rings on the other end before he answered.

"Hello?"

"Mickey, it's Rose."

~

While Rose had been in this world for five years, Mickey Smith had been there longer. It had been three years from him between the time the Doctor and Rose had left him there, to Rose and Jackie being trapped. In those years, he had lived with his grandmother.

When Rose and Jackie came to this world, Jackie insisted on having his grandmother staying with them in the Tyler mansion. But three years ago, Mickey's grandmother had passed away. In some ways, Mickey had no one left for him. Jackie and Pete were busy with Tony, and he and Rose had been over a long time ago. They were still best mates but there was no way there would be any future romantic entanglements with each other.

Yet it was hard to move on if you were seeing your ex-girlfriend every day and working alongside her. He still enjoyed working for Torchwood and defending the Earth but he decided that it was time to get some distance.

Rose was supportive of his decision and when Torchwood established their first offshore branch in New York, Mickey was tasked with leading it. It was a massive responsibility but Pete and Rose had complete faith in him.

They were right to do so since Mickey was a brilliant leader. He had built Torchwood New York from the ground up and it was currently the largest Torchwood branch apart from the main one in London. He had also been responsible for creating further Torchwood branches in the United States.

A year ago, he had met Dr. Martha Jones, a medic in Torchwood New York, who also happened to be Addy's cousin. He and Martha had hit it off and they had married only six months ago. Martha was currently four months pregnant with the couple's first child which was why Rose hadn't seen Mickey in a while.

He was surprised to get her call but when he realised that it was almost four am in London, he was slightly concerned. "Rose, is everything alright?" he asked, sounding worried. "Are Jackie, Pete and Tony okay?"

"Mickey, they are fine," said Rose, putting him at ease. "I just called to tell you that I am coming to New York."

"What?" he asked, surprised. "When?"

"In two days," she said, calculating that it was enough time to make the necessary arrangements and finish some of the snooping she wanted to do.

"It's so sudden," said Mickey. "Are you sure you are okay?"

Rose hesitated as she briefly considered telling him everything. But then her paranoia kicked in and she gave a slight chuckle. "Everything's fine," she said. "I just need a vacation."

Now Mickey knew that something was definitely wrong. Rose never took vacations; the girl practically worked herself to death. But he could tell that there was something stopping her from telling him everything. Maybe she wanted to do it in person. "Alright," he said. "Let me know your zeppelin's schedule. I'll be there to pick you up."

"Thanks Mickey," said Rose, sounding slightly relieved. "How are Martha and the little one?"

"They are both fine," said Mickey, smiling despite himself.

"That's good," said Rose sincerely. "I have to go, Micks. I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah okay," said Mickey. "Take care, Rose."

Rose smiled to herself, knowing that despite her best efforts, Mickey had guessed that something was wrong. Strangely, she felt tears prick her eyes. "Thanks Mickey," she said softly. "I'll see you soon." Then she hung up and wiped at her eyes. She had two days; two days to gather as much information about the leak as she could before she told Mickey and they came up with a solution.

She drove home quietly, knowing that she had been asked to take a day off after the ordeal with James. It was good; she could play off the visit to New York as an extended break without arousing too much suspicion. When she got home, she locked the door after her and pulled out some papers from the safe in her bedroom.

There were thirteen of them and Rose laid them out on her bed. The oldest one was from her 22nd birthday, her second birthday in this universe. She had been suspicious for months when she saw that there was no discernible aging in her during the past year.

The paper was a lab result of her blood sample that she had sent anonymously to a lab in Switzerland. Her paranoia had seemed to be justified when the results came back saying that the sample belonged to a person aged 20 years and 10 months.

Trying to stay calm, she had sent the same sample to two other labs in Germany and Sweden, which returned the same results. The samples belonged to a person aged 20 years and 10 months. The same physical age she had been when she had been separated from the Doctor.

Every year since, Rose had sent her blood samples for testing on her birthday. She kept her identity anonymous and used different labs in different countries so that it would be impossible to track. Every year, she hoped for a different result. But every year, she got the same results.

For the past five years, Rose Tyler was aged 20 years and 10 months. The only person that she told this to was Mickey. He was worried about her but Rose made him swear that he wouldn't tell anyone, not even Martha.

This knowledge had made her more paranoid than ever. Which was why she knew that if there was a leak in Torchwood then all the secrets that she had fought to keep hidden might already have come to light.

Maybe it was just her paranoia but Rose's instincts told her that it went much deeper than that. James had known about the Doctor, had known that she was not of this universe. What if he had told someone? What if she had been under scrutiny by someone at Torchwood and not even realised it? What if they had discovered that she couldn't age?

She knew enough of Torchwood's history and protocols to know that someone like her would be strapped to a table and tested upon until they discovered what made her tick. Maybe it was only the fact that she was Pete Tyler's daughter that was keeping her alive. If so, how long did she have before they came for her?

Rose took a steadying breath to calm down. She was running ahead of herself. She had to be sure that James had a spy within Torchwood and that there was someone who was aware of her secrets. There was still the possibility of James knowing about the crystal from the Llriks, whose possession the crystal had been found in.

But Rose knew her instincts well and she knew that her first assumption was correct. Not to mention that Bad Wolf had turned up after five years. It was all connected; it had to be.

In a moment that surprised even her, Rose felt resentment towards the Doctor. She resented the fact that just as she had established a life for herself, it had all fallen to pieces. Even if Torchwood wasn't after her now, they would come for her once it became obvious that she wasn't aging. Maybe in five more years. Or ten. Or fifteen. Pete wouldn't be there to protect her forever.

And she was angry. Angry at the Doctor for not finding a way back to her, angry at Torchwood, angry at the universe for cursing her with god-knows-what that kept her from aging. She had tried to go on and make something of herself, and now it was going to be taken away from her.

For the first time in a very long time, Rose allowed herself to rage and rant at the unfairness of everything. She wept bitterly and smashed quite a few of her belongings, cursing in every language that she knew. Her life here, the adventure of living here day after day was over. Even if it turned out that there was no leak and there was no one after her right now, this had come as a wake up call.

There was no way she could lead an ordinary life. Not when she would wear the same face for years and years to come. She could never stop, never lay roots, never make a steady life for herself. She was cursed; cursed like the Doctor was cursed. Cursed to keep moving forever, cursed to always leaving people behind unless she wanted to see them age and die while she stayed the same, cursed to be a wanderer for the rest of her life.

And yes, that was why she resented the Doctor. Because he had a TARDIS and a universe that he was familiar with. And she was stuck in an unfamiliar world, with no way out and scared for her life.

~

"The Commander is going to New York," the woman reported to her superior. "She made a call to Director of Torchwood New York, Mickey Smith."

"Did she give a reason?"

"No, she just said that it was a vacation," she said.

There was a long pause. "Keep tapping her phone. Maybe this is really a vacation. But make arrangements with our contacts in New York to keep an eye on her."

"Yes, of course," she nodded. "What should I tell them?"

Another pause. "Tell them to keep their distance. If she becomes suspicious or if she and Smith seem to be planning, capture her and bring her to London."

The woman's eyes were wide. "B-but what about Director Tyler?" she asked in a frightened voice.

There was a chuckle. "He won't know. For him and the rest of the world, Rose Tyler will die in New York. See to it that my instructions are carried out to the letter."


	8. Chapter 8

'Zeppelin T344 from London to New York City boarding at gate E5. First class passengers, kindly make your way to the gate.'

Rose picked up her compactly packed bag and walked towards gate E5. "Good evening, Miss Tyler," greeted the attendant with a polite smile. "Enjoy your journey." Rose smiled in thanks and walked past her to board the zeppelin. The zeppelin wasn't too full and Rose was grateful to know that the seat next to hers was empty.

In the two days between her call to Mickey and now, Rose had drawn up a contingency plan. It had been difficult to come to that decision but Rose knew she could not ignore it any longer. She had to be prepared to vanish at less than a moment's notice.

Arranging the perfect escape was harder than she could have imagined. She could use nothing that could be traced back to her or worse, her family. Her family's safety was paramount. She could always disappear into the shadows but she could never drag them with her. Of course, she knew that they would come along voluntarily if she asked but she would never want them to give up their lives for her. Her mum and dad had got a second chance and now, they had Tony too. Rose knew that she had to part ways with them sooner or later.

As she was thinking of her plan, Rose realised the glaringly obvious. Nowhere on Earth would be safe for her. She was too well-known for that. Not to mention that she could never stay cooped up in one place for long. Getting off-world was not a huge deal for her. She had been doing that a few times over the past years. The technology of this universe had already been advanced during Lumic's time and everything that Rose and Torchwood had done in building relations with aliens around Earth, had only improved their technological scope.

Rose had made a list of allies and finally narrowed it down to one. She knew they would help her, come hell or high water. She trusted them, probably more than she trusted the humans. When they had last met, their Commander had given Rose a personalised radio in case she needed to communicate. Rose had used it to her advantage and got in touch with him a day ago.

She had been careful to mention that she could not be certain when she might require help. It could be a day, a week, a month, a year, or a decade from now. The Commander had been understanding, as she knew he would be. He had assured her that she could call on him anytime and he would respond.

And then came the hard part: telling Pete, Jackie and Tony. Rose was clear that she may not have to use the escape for years but it did little to stop Jackie from launching into a rant. It was only after Rose showed them her blood tests from over the years that Jackie burst into tears and actually started to listen to what Rose was saying.

Pete was already thinking of calling up Torchwood contacts when Rose stopped him. She trusted no one and didn't want to alert anyone that she had an escape plan. Better to let them think that she was helpless and hapless.

Tony understood better than her mum and dad, as she knew he would. He had memorised the files on 'The Shepherd Taskforce' when Rose had been studying them some time ago, and he explained in precise detail the protocol involved when dealing with an unexplained physiological anomaly in humans. Jackie had winced during his descriptions and then promptly banned him from reading anything that she hadn't approved beforehand.

She had then asked what Rose intended to do once she got away from Earth. It had been a dilemma for Rose because she knew that even her allies could only help her so much. The walls of the universe were still sealed and there was no way to cross over. Jackie had made her promise that she would find the Doctor. Rose had nodded along but knew there was logically not enough of a chance that she would find the Doctor as easily as she wanted. She was determined to try regardless.

The final thing she had done before leaving London was make a quick trip to the Torchwood Tower. She had needed one last thing before everything was ready.

Maybe she would have more time to decide exactly what to do, she tried to convince herself as the zeppelin flew over the Arctic ocean. There had been only so much she could have done in two days. At least, she prayed she had the time as she leaned back in her seat and tried to get some sleep. But the feeling of dread wouldn't let her sleep.

~

Mickey smiled hastily when he saw Rose at the zeppelin port. She had lost weight and looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her smile was tired but genuine as she hugged him. He hugged his best mate back, wishing for the millionth time he knew of a way to make things better for her.

Sometimes he felt guilty because he and Jackie had integrated themselves in their new lives so quickly, leaving Rose behind in so many ways. Throughout his life, Mickey had resented, admired, respected and even hated the Doctor. But he would never forgive him for not finding a way back to Rose.

"Good flight?" he asked her, once they had broken apart.

Rose nodded quickly. "Not too bad," she said.

"Did you get any sleep?" he asked as he took her bag and led her to the carpark.

"Sure, yeah," she said.

"Liar," he countered, rolling his eyes.

She chuckled and shook her head. "I tried to," she said. "That ought to count for something. Where are we off to?" she asked him when they got into his car.

"Breakfast," he said as he started the car up. "Unless you want to go to your hotel room and get some sleep first."

"Breakfast sounds good," said Rose with a soft smile. "Where's Martha?"

"Tish has been in San Francisco for the past week so Martha's gone to the west coast," said Mickey. "She said she would have cancelled her trip if she had known you were coming to visit."

"Totally my fault," said Rose. "I should have given more of a notice."

"Nah, I heard what happened," said Mickey. He glanced at her through the corner of his eyes. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she said. At Mickey's look, she shrugged lightly. "I don't know, Micks. The last week or so has been...awful, really."

"You are not here on vacation, are you?" Mickey asked her.

Rose shook her head. "I need your help," she said. At Mickey's encouraging look, she told him about James and what he had revealed.

Mickey was horrified at the idea of an alien from their old universe being here. But then he listened to Rose's suspicions of a leak in Torchwood and the nagging sense of dread, that had filled him ever since his research, intensified.

"You're quiet," said Rose, after they had driven in silence for a while.

"I think...you are right," he said at last. "You sounded worried and wouldn't tell me over the phone so, I did some digging. Have you heard of the Shepherd Taskforce?"

Rose's eyes snapped to him quickly. "That's confidential," she hissed.

"Not if I hack into it, it's not," said Mickey, sounding a bit smug about his accomplishment.

Rose snorted and shook her head. "No, I guess not," she said. "Yeah, I know what the Shepherd Taskforce is. So does Tony, as a matter of fact. He freaked mum and dad out when he started describing some of the 'processes' they used to examine those physiological anomalies in humans."

"That boy reminds me so much of the old Doc, you wouldn't believe," said Mickey, shaking his head. "Sure he wasn't yours and the Doctor's?"

Rose shot him a glare and Mickey gave her an apologetic shrug. "What's this about the Shepherd Taskforce then? It was disbanded back before I even came into this universe," she said.

"Yeah, Jake and I were there when it was shut down. But apparently, the thing has gone underground," said Mickey.

Rose stared at him. "Are you telling me they are operating without Torchwood's authorisation?" she asked.

"Without their 'official' authorisation," corrected Mickey.

"Meaning without Pete knowing," said Rose, her mind whirling. "But how? All the original members are dead. And I know Yvonne Hartman's sister. Lydia is on my team."

"Are you sure Hartman's dead?" asked Mickey.

"Of course I am," said Rose. "She was killed by Lumic's Cybermen in that raid in Glasgow."

Mickey sighed as he parked the car in a shopping mall's parking lot. "Look, all I'm saying is that Yvonne was a ruthless leader of the Shepherd Taskforce. She captured humans if she even suspected there was something not right about them. There is a reason that the Shepherd Taskforce was kept confidential. No one wants to acknowledge the dark stain in their history of when they conducted a witchhunt for anything remotely inhuman. If there would have been anyone to have kept it going now, it would have been Yvonne Hartman."

"Mickey, the woman is dead," said Rose as they walked into a cafe.

"But her sister isn't," said Mickey significantly.

~

"Good afternoon, Lydia."

Lydia chewed on her lips nervously. "The Commander should have arrived in New York by now."

The woman at the other end of the video conference looked pleased. "Excellent," she said. "I was getting bored by myself here anyway. New York is rather grey. What about our surveillance?"

Lydia opened an email quickly. "Yes, they have tailed the Commander from the zeppelin. She and Director Smith are having breakfast right now," she said, reading through the email quickly. "Should I tell them to continue surveillance?"

"Yes," said the other woman. "Good work, Lydia. Your sister would have been proud of you."

The call cut off and Lydia rubbed her forehead. She knew she was doing the right thing; protecting the cause that her sister had started. She just couldn't realise why she felt so guilty all the time.

~

"Lydia is not a traitor," said Rose as she and Mickey sat at a booth in the corner of the busy cafe. "I picked her out for the team myself."

"Rose, you give people too much credit sometimes," said Mickey. "If the Shepherd Taskforce is still operating then Hartman's sister is at the top of the suspect list."

"I don't like this," said Rose, stabbing her scrambled eggs repeatedly with her fork. "It's Lydia! I trust her. There's no way she's been involved with the Shepherd Taskforce."

Unnoticed by the two of them, a man sitting two tables away pulled out his phone and sent off a quick text message. _Suspicions confirmed. L.H. compromised. Please advise._

"You didn't even know the Taskforce was up and running until I told you," snapped Mickey. "Rose, this is your life we are talking about. If Lydia has given you away..."

Rose fell silent and took a big gulp of her coffee, not even caring when she burnt her mouth. "Say, she did betray me," said Rose slowly. "And I'm not saying she did," she added hastily. "She had no way of confirming those suspicions. Nobody knows about the blood tests."

"But she could have put surveillance on you. Tapped your phones," said Mickey. "She was close to you, Rose. It makes her dangerous."

The man checked his phone when it buzzed back with a reply. _Follow and capture the flower. Enact protocol vT5_. He got up from the table and left the cafe.

"She couldn't have, Mickey," said Rose, but her argument sounded weak even to herself.

Mickey squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry, babe," he said apologetically. "But if the Shepherd Taskforce is after you then we have to find a way to hide you."

"I already have one," said Rose, in a deadpan. "I was just hoping I had more time before I had to use it."

"What are you going to do?" asked Mickey.

"Can't tell you," she said firmly. At Mickey's hurt look, she clarified. "Plausible deniability, Micks. I haven't told anyone."

"Wouldn't be the first time I risked my neck for you, Rose," he said, with a small, sad smile.

"Maybe I don't want anyone to risk their neck for me anymore," she said sadly. "No, listen," she said when Mickey opened his mouth to interrupt. "You have a wife and a new baby on the way. Mum and Dad have a new life and Tony. I don't fit, Mickey, and I never have. I will not ruin your lives. This is something that I have to do on my own."

Mickey nodded sadly. "When?" he asked.

"I think I'll take a zeppelin back tomorrow," she said.

"So soon?" he asked.

"Why delay?" she asked with a forced smile. "Sooner I disappear into the shadows, the less everyone has to worry."

"Can I change your mind?" he asked her, already knowing the answer.

"No," she said firmly and then gave him a smile that reminded him of the old Rose. "Come on, I'll drop my stuff at the hotel and then you can show us around for a bit before it's time for me to go."

Mickey nodded as the two of them stood up from their table and left the cafe together. Back in the deserted carpark, Mickey started to unlock the car but the keys slipped from his hands. He groaned and bent to pick them up, hearing Rose giggle at his clumsiness.

When he stood back up, Rose was no longer in sight. "Rose?" he called, but then felt a sharp blow at his head that knocked him out.

A man caught him before he could hit the ground. The woman, who had been talking to Lydia via video conference before, emerged from the van next to Mickey's car and glanced at him. "Retcon him and drop him off home. Let him think that the Commander went to her hotel room after he picked her up from the zeppelin port."

"Yes, Miss Costello," the man answered her as he put Mickey in his car's backseat and closed the doors. "What about the Commander?"

Suzie Costello glanced at the unconscious form of Rose Tyler that had taken three Agents to achieve. "Take her to our private zeppelin port. And make sure that her hotel room is burnt to a cinder making an ID impossible."

"Anything else?" her agent asked.

"No," said Suzie with a small smile. "Just ask our scientists in London to prepare a bed. They are getting a new specimen."


	9. Chapter 9

Darkness was a blissful escape, Rose realised. It hurt when it first sunk its claws into you but as it dragged you towards oblivion, it was a feeling that was incomparable. Then again, Rose had never put much stock into letting anything drag her anywhere. Except maybe the Doctor...

Wake up.

Rose opened her eyes as her mind commanded her body sharply. She tried to keep her reaction as quiet as possible. She realised that she had been secured to a zeppelin seat and that no one had realised that she was awake yet.

The zeppelin was shaking and shuddering as it travelled through the storm. Everyone else was frantic as the journey was less than ideal. Amidst the chaos, Rose heard the news broadcast being aired.

"...and in a tragic accident, Earth Commander and Vitex heiress Rose Tyler was found dead when there was a gas explosion on the floor of her hotel room. Miss Tyler was the only casualty of the explosion which injured 10 others..."

Rose reckoned she should be thankful for small mercies. She was afraid of what the Shepherd Taskforce would do to cover their tracks. An accidental death wasn't so bad after all. She hoped her mum, dad, Tony and Mickey...oh god, Mickey! Rose had a brief moment of panic as she thought of Mickey.

But luck was on her side as the broadcast continued. "...Head of Torchwood New York Mickey Smith, refused to make a comment and is requesting privacy for the Tyler family as they grieve this tragic event..."

Rose closed her eyes and tried to blink back tears. She hoped they would be fine. But right now, she had bigger worries.

"Can't we get out of this infernal storm?" demanded Suzie Costello, yelling into the phone connected to the pilot's cabin.

"We took the longer route over Scotland because you wanted to leave New York at once," snapped the pilot. At Suzie's annoyed growl, he grew nervous. "We can make an emergency landing, I suppose," he said. "We are near the old Torchwood Estate. There is a zeppelin pad there."

"Then land us," ordered Suzie sharply. "I can't take much more of this storm."

Rose had to stop herself from sighing in relief. The Torchwood Estate was the perfect place to be. She knew that Estate like the back of her hand. And not just because she had once been locked in its dungeon with a werewolf.

A few months after she had been in this world, Rose had found herself curious as to what event had caused this universe to off-shoot from the main universe. The most obvious clue was staring her right in the face: Torchwood. In that main universe, Torchwood had been founded by Queen Victoria to defend Britain against the Doctor and Rose.

But there had been no Doctor and Rose in this world. So Rose had gone digging into Torchwood's history. Only to find that the Torchwood Institute had been founded by Lady Isobel McLeish after Queen Victoria had been murdered there along with her guards and Sir Robert.

Knowing that had given Rose some peace of mind. She had blamed herself for a long time, thinking that it had been their own arrogance that had created Torchwood which had later separated them. But this little confirmation that Torchwood would have existed regardless was a small consolation.

She had taken to making small trips to the Torchwood Estate every now and then. Like Bad Wolf Bay, it was a reminder of the life that she had lost and she always felt much better after spending time around those places. The Doctor had been big on moving along and not talking about the past but Rose liked to face her demons. Keeping things bottled up only hurt later and she had learned this the hard way.

The zeppelin landed shakily and Rose kept up the pretence of being unconscious. No need to let her captors know that she was awake. An unconscious enemy was less dangerous than a conscious one. She felt herself being lifted up and the cologne told her it was Flynn from R&D.

Shame, she had liked him, despite his horrible taste in cologne. Rose had to work very hard not to gag at the overwhelming musky scent every time she had seen him. And now, it was harder than ever since he was carrying her.

She could feel the storm raging as they left the warmth of the zeppelin and stepped outside. She could hear the rain pattering on the tin roof of the hangar close to the zeppelin pad. It was freezing cold but someone must have been holding an umbrella over Flynn because the rain wasn't hitting Rose.

As she was being carried to the house, Rose did a quick inventory of herself. She didn't think she would have her bag since they would have made sure to let it burn in the 'explosion'. But Rose had kept two things in her jacket that she knew she would need: the radio to call the Commander, and that other thing she had picked up from Torchwood.

She could still feel them against her ribs and she was grateful for that. If those things were taken away, then Rose wasn't sure what she would do. Finally, the air became slightly warmer again and Rose knew they must have reached the house.

"Secure her," ordered Suzie. "The dungeon will do."

"Ma'am," one of them started to protest and Rose recognised the voice belonging to one of the technicians from Malcolm's lab. "The dungeons are draughty and not very clean."

"So?" demanded Suzie. "She's not like us, is she?"

The protester fell silent and Rose wanted to scream at her for being such a meek sheep. Sometimes Rose really hated her own species. Though, she wondered as she was chained up to the shackles attached to the dungeon wall, there was something to be said about irony.

Once she was positive that the doors had closed, Rose opened her eyes and wanted to laugh out loud in sheer disbelief. She was chained to the very wall she had been during the werewolf incident. Except, she did not have Sir Robert's household to help pull the shackles off.

She tried tugging them on her own but realised that they were in surprisingly good condition despite their age. At least her feet were free, she thought gloomily.

Rose supposed that Suzie would be along soon enough. Rose knew her protocols well. She would ask her the secret of her non-aging. The first interrogation would not be very violent.

The second one would involve taking blood samples and then working out which truth serum would work best on her. If the truth serum didn't work, then the real guns came out.

Torture of the physical and mental kind, the worst sort of depravities would soon follow until the subject broke or died. Whichever came first. Rose had a morbid thought as she wondered how long she would last.

No, no, no, she thought firmly. She would escape as soon as she could.

The dungeon doors banged open and Rose adopted a neutral expression. "Evening, Rose," Suzie greeted, looking a tiny bit smug.

Resisting the urge to smack that look off her face, Rose nodded politely. "Good evening, Suzie. Nice dungeon. Is it yours?" Just because she was keeping her tone polite did not mean that she was going to be meek and submissive.

Suzie chuckled. "Your sense of humour is adorable," she said, as if speaking to a child. "I suppose you know why you are here."

"Enlighten me," said Rose dryly.

Suzie raised her eyebrows. "You are not human," she said bluntly. "What are you?"

"Straight to it, aren't you?" asked Rose. "Don't you remember that I know every single one of these interrogation procedures? Better than you, I might add."

"Fine," snapped Suzie. "Then, perhaps we can skip the niceties." She looked away from Rose. "Bring her to the dining room!" she ordered.

Rose did not struggle as Flynn and one of the other Agents that Rose knew was called Garrett, came over to her and unchained her shackles from the wall. They grabbed her arms but Rose did not struggle. Suzie led the way out and Rose followed with her escorts.

"You can't even look me in the eye, can you?" she asked the two Agents who were keeping their gazes in front of them. "I wonder how betrayal feels..." she murmured, noticing the way that they flinched. Good, she thought. Let them understand the consequences of exactly what they were doing.

"Don't listen to her!" snapped Suzie. "She is trying to mess with you."

But the damage was done, Rose knew. It was one thing to persecute aliens when they were strangers. But to have their own Commander with whom they had worked for five years, it would be considerably more difficult.

She was brought to the dining room and Rose was forced to sit in a chair set a little way away from the table, with her hands bound to the chair arms with ropes. Laid out on the table was an array of Earth and alien torture devices that would make the toughest of villains quiver.

Suzie watched Rose's face for a reaction but was seriously disappointed when Rose only gave the devices a passing glance. "Where are the others?" asked Rose as she was tied to the chair. "Surely they are not going to miss me being tortured. Or don't they have the guts?" she asked impudently.

"Shut up," ordered Suzie as the Agents looked uncomfortable.

"I mean," Rose continued, not giving any indication of having heard Suzie. "If they are going to be a part of this, then they should have the guts to look me in the eye as they torture me. Don't you think?"

Suzie picked up a dermal incinerator and pointed it at Rose. "Stop talking or I'll burn out your eyes first," she threatened.

Rose raised her eyebrows. "So, I suppose Lydia was the traitor? Where is she anyway?" she asked.

"You are not asking the questions," snapped Suzie.

"I think you'll find out I am," said Rose condescendingly. "So, Lydia," she prompted.

"She arrived ten minutes ago from London," Agent Garrett said meekly.

Rose gave him a bright smile. "Excellent, I want to see her," she said.

"No," said Suzie.

"Can it, Suzie," said Rose in a bored tone. "I'll see dear Lydia before I feel like talking to any of you." At Suzie's incredulous glance, Rose rolled her eyes. "Seriously, I'll talk. Whatever you need. You won't even have to use that dermal incinerator. Which incidentally, you are holding backwards." Suzie dropped the weapon and Rose had to try hard not to laugh. "Well?" she asked.

"You get fifteen minutes," said Suzie.

"Make it twenty and I'll add in a few more juicy tidbits," said Rose with a winning smile.

Suzie gritted her teeth as she opened the door and beckoned Lydia in from a room at the furthest end of the hallway. Rose could see the rest of the Agents watching Rose with scared and slightly ashamed eyes. Rose refused to feel an ounce of sympathy for them. She had worked with those people, mentored quite a number of them and they had never thought twice about betraying her.

"Hello Lydia," she said in a tone that she reserved for her team when they had something monumentally stupid. Lydia flinched and ducked her head. "Leave us," Rose ordered. Suzie looked like she was about to protest but even Lydia nodded at her to go along. The two Agents in the dining room were only too glad to leave. When the doors had closed, Rose stared squarely at Lydia. "So, you gave me away." It was a cold statement.

Lydia flinched again and nodded. "I had to," she said in a small voice.

"Had to?" asked Rose in a mocking voice. "You're saying you didn't have a choice?"

"My sister, she started this Taskforce..." Lydia began and Rose shook her head.

"Your sister hunted hundreds of aliens and massacred them," said Rose in a level voice. "Harmless aliens who had done nothing but live in peace. Ethnic cleansing of a whole different kind."

Lydia glared. "Don't talk about her like that," she said.

"And you are following in her footsteps," said Rose, her voice taunting. "Bad blood, I reckon. Tell me, was the family of Hartman built to grow murderers or something?"

Lydia picked up a gun from the table and pointed it at Rose. "Shut up!" she yelled.

"You really are proving my point, you know," said Rose calmly. "Your first instinct is to murder." She tutted loudly. "All my training is in vain, isn't it?"

"I said, stop talking!" Lydia said as she walked up to Rose and rested the gun against her forehead.

Rose gave her a smile. "Guess that answers that," she murmured. "My training really was in vain."

In a flash, Rose had kicked Lydia right in the gut. Lydia went staggering backwards, the gun slipping from her grip and careening off. Yet again thankful that her legs were free, Rose hobbled over to the wall and jammed her side into it. The chair arm that her hands were bound to, only took three hits to break. Rose was grateful that these chairs were new and not the sturdy old chairs from the Victorian times. IKEA furniture was not very good at restricting movement.

With one hand free, Rose tugged the ropes from her other hand and ducked just in time as Lydia fired the gun. It hit the wall behind her and Rose knew she had very little time before the others came rushing in. Grabbing the broken chair arm, she threw it with as much force as she could at Lydia.

Lydia ducked but she wasn't expecting Rose to throw the second arm immediately after it with deadly precision. It hit her forehead with a crunch and she slumped to the floor unconscious. She was still breathing and Rose waited long enough to grab two guns and a knife before running over to a window and throwing it open.

She was only one floor above the ground and thick ivy grew along the outer walls of the house. Without hesitating, Rose swung herself out of the window, finding firm hold in the ivy. She heard the dining room doors fling open as the rest of the agents rushed in.

Rose knew she hadn't got long, so she began to slither down as quickly as she could. The rain drenched her, she could barely see, and her hands were scraped quite painfully but she was thankful when her feet hit the squelchy ground.

Upstairs she saw Suzie leaning out of the window, ready to fire. Rose ducked into the bushes around the house and navigated through the darkness, trying to avoid getting hit by Suzie's errant firing. She knew that there was a hedge here that led to the shed beyond the house which was used as a garage.

Lydia hadn't come with them on the zeppelin which meant that she must have driven here from London. Rose discovered she was right when she saw a Torchwood issue SUV parked inside. It took her one try to open it and about thirty nine seconds to hotwire it.

Pressing her foot down on the accelerator, she floored it away from the Torchwood Estate. She could hear the agents firing at her but she knew the SUV was bulletproof. There were no other cars at the house but Rose still took the precaution of smashing up the navigation system in the car.

She drove for an hour or so, doubling back twice to make sure that she would leave everyone confused. Finally, as dawn broke over the horizon, she drove to a small seaside village and hopped out. It was still too early in the morning for people to be about so she managed to remain inconspicuous as she climbed one of the tall cliffs near the sea.

The sun started to rise and with a heavy heart, Rose pulled out her phone and sent two messages, one to Mickey and one to her mum and dad. They both said the same thing: Ten.

Once the messages were sent, Rose placed the phone on the ground and stomped on it as hard as she could. It broke with a satisfying crunch. The code would tell them that she was alive but leaving Earth. Without a proper goodbye, this was the best that she could do.

With a heavy heart, she pulled out the radio and activated it. It only took a few moments before the connection was made. Rose took a deep breath.

"Commander Skaldak, it's time."


	10. Interlude: Across the Void

Across the void, Dr. Martha Jones had just married Dr. Tom Milligan in a private yet beautiful ceremony. The Doctor and Donna Noble clapped as the new Dr. and Dr. Milligan walked into the reception hall, hand in hand.

"Come on," said the Doctor to Donna. "Back to the TARDIS."

"We are not staying?" Donna asked, though unsurprised. It had been an effort to even bring him this far. It had taken persuasion and a little emotional blackmail on both her and Martha's part.

The Doctor heaved an exaggerated sigh. "We'll stay long enough to congratulate them," he conceded. "But then, I am taking to you to the biggest library in the universe."

"You could be nicer, you know," Donna said, nudging his side when he stuffed one too many nibbles into his mouth. "God, you are such a child!"

"I am nice!" said the Doctor defensively. "I came, didn't I?"

"Yeah, after whining for nearly ten days," said Donna, rolling her eyes. "We should have brought Jenny. She would have been a lot more fun."

The Doctor sniffed and grabbed a few more nibbles from a passing waiter. "Jenny told me in no uncertain terms that she had a major paper on dimensional physics due in three days and was to be left undisturbed. Even after I offered time travel as a solution."

"She's honest, that's not a bad thing," Donna pointed out. "The University thing is good for her, isn't it?"

The Doctor smiled involuntarily. "Yeah," he agreed. "And this way, I know she is not getting off killed somewhere. I still don't know if she can regenerate. Terra-forming is not a reliable thing to depend on every time."

Donna patted his arm. "Stop worrying. Jenny is going to be fine," she said. "Come on, let's congratulate Martha and be on our way."

The two of them walked towards the bride and groom, while the last chords of 'Hungry like the Wolf' filtered through the air.

~

After their trip to the Library, the Doctor retired to his room in the TARDIS. Well, technically it was their room. Had been so, since the incident with the Dalek in Van Statten's bunker. He fell onto his side of the bed and closed his eyes.

"Hello Rose," he whispered, pretending she could hear him. "It's Day 747 without you. I still haven't stopped trying to reach for your hand in the middle of running or turning in our bed and expecting to find you sleeping next to me. It still hurts. It hurts so much."

He sighed and turned in the bed, keeping his eyes closed. 747 days meant that her scent was all but gone but he didn't let that dishearten him. "Jenny is doing well. I give it another year before she will be Dr. Jenny Tyler. Did I ever tell you why she picked 'Tyler' as a last name? Well, when she first came on board she found our room and your things all around. Of course, she made me tell her about you. And then upon seeing a picture of you, decided that you could in essence be her mother had she been born of two parents. I could have stopped her, told her she couldn't pick 'Tyler' as a last name but I really, really did not want to do that. Is it selfish of me to pretend that she is our daughter? She looks so much like you, has your bloody cheek and jumps through lasers without breaking a sweat."

"I think she still holds hope that you will return. So does Donna. Even Martha thinks you will find a way back. I try so hard not to believe them. I can't allow myself to hope, Rose," he let a few tears slip out. "It hurts to hope. You were taken away from me as soon as I had allowed myself to believe your promise of forever." He sniffed and turned onto his back, his eyes still shut.

"Anyway, let me tell you about a peculiar thing that happened today. After congratulating Martha and Tom, Donna and I went to the Library. Not just any library, but the biggest one in the universe. You would have loved it. But the Library was empty. And then came the archaeologists led by Professor River Song."

"The first thing that I noticed about her was that time moved peculiarly around her. That put me on alert at once and it only became more and more suspicious when she knew exactly who Donna and I were. She was a Professor at Luna University so naturally, I wondered if she knew Jenny. Turns out, she did. Except she came from a few years ahead of where Jenny is. Do you know what that means, Rose? River Song was someone from the future. The relative future."

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "It only got weirder from there. She seemed to know everything about me. In a way that was very, very not good. But then, she slipped up and asked why I was alone. She saw the surprise on my face and then hastily changed the subject. I don't know if I just imagined it when she cast a panic-filled glance at my left hand..."

"I don't know what's happening, Rose. Am I supposed to be married to this woman? I wasn't attracted to her and it didn't seem like she was to me, either. To be perfectly honest, it felt like I was interacting with Jenny. She kept looking at me as if she had a hundred questions on her mind and when I challenged her, she told me the one thing that could make me trust her. Just two words, but those words have had power over me for so long, Rose. Bad Wolf."

"Please, Rose," he was crying now. It had been a really emotional day even before Professor Song had whispered that in his ear. "Are you coming back? Are you really, really coming back? Or am I going mad? I couldn't bear it if this was just some cruel universal joke. Please, Rose. I need to know. I need to know if it is alright to expect to see you one day when I turn around to look for you. I need to know if you are going to do the impossible, my precious girl. My precious, darling girl."

He waited until he couldn't bear the silence any longer and opened his eyes slowly. The room and the bed remained empty as ever. Sighing mournfully, the Doctor pulled the duvet all the way over his head and burrowed himself inside the darkness.

~

While the Doctor and Donna were in the library, Captain Jack Harkness was at his favourite bar on Majesticia. He raised an eyebrow at the Adipose who was clearly drunk and falling off the bar. Someone needed to take the little tyke home.

This bar had become his frequent haunt after losing Tosh and Owen. He knew that Ianto and Gwen were concerned at his untimely disappearances but they did not pry and he was grateful for that. He had already missed Martha's wedding and knew there would be hell to pay for that.

Apparently, even the Doctor had been there. He wondered what Donna had threatened him with to get him to comply. Or she could have just asked Jenny to do the dirty work. The Doctor would not dream of disappointing his little girl. Jack swallowed back his drink and shook his head. Jenny was good for the Doctor. He had never been the same ever since...well, since he had lost Rose.

Jack understood, he really did. He had loved Rose just as much as the Doctor, and had accepted long ago that it would forever remain unrequited. He was bound to her in so many ways; the girl in the Union Jack who had seen a hero in a conman, someone she had seen fit to call her friend, someone she had defied all laws of nature for and brought back to life...

He wanted her back in this universe, he wanted her and the Doctor to be happy, he wanted Jenny to meet the woman whose last name she had chosen for herself, he wanted Martha and Donna to meet the wonderful Rose Tyler whose shadow they had been inadvertently living in.

He signalled the bartender for a fresh drink and the bartender put down a fresh coaster with a drink on top of it. Jack picked it up and was about to down it when he noticed the logo on the coaster. A golden wolf stared back at him surrounded by the words 'bad'.

~

"I almost slipped up and asked him about her," Professor Song shook her head. "I forgot that this was way back in his timeline."

"You couldn't have known," her mother said comfortingly.

"I know," said River. "For a moment in the Library, it looked like I was going to have to plug myself into the computer to download the saved people from CAL but the Doctor found a different way. He saved me yet again."

"He does that," sighed Amelia Williams, with a sad smile.

They were silent for a moment wherein River realised that the house seemed a little quiet. "Where's Dad? And Tony?" River asked curiously.

"Park," Amy answered. "Your brother is far too energetic during holidays, I'm afraid. So, Rose wasn't with him yet?"

"No," sighed River sadly. "I don't know how long it will be until she finds him."

Amy smiled and looked at her typewriter where she was about to start Chapter 11 of Summer Falls. "She'll find him," she said confidently. "Their story is not over yet. Far from it."

"How's the book coming along?" River asked.

"Good," smiled Amy. "Just wait until I write this one. It's going to make everyone cry their eyes out."


	11. Chapter 10

The first month that Rose spent in the Ice Warrior colony on Mars passed surprisingly quickly. The journey from Earth to the Martian base had taken about three hours, during which Rose had filled in Commander Skaldak about her predicament.

She was careful not to mention the not-aging thing; she just explained that she was in danger of being persecuted by a fanatical group. Which was not too far from the truth.

The base that they arrived at was one of the smaller ones on Mars. It was led by Skaldak's daughter, a friend of Rose's. About three years ago, the Ice Warriors had been about to invade Earth after a few minor solar storms had nearly destroyed their cold climate. They had hoped to colonise Earth to gain the technology that Earth was using to keep a lid on what the Earthlings called global warming.

Rose, having been newly appointed Commander just a month before, had brokered a treaty with Skaldak and his daughter Ssari. In exchange for offering Mars protection from the sun's heat, the Ice Warriors would share their terraforming technology. They had managed to grow some of the lushest flora within their greenhouses on the red planet and Earth had benefitted from learning their methods.

Skaldak, typical of the Ice Warriors, had been reluctant to agree to a treaty but Ssari and Rose had both been adamant that there should be no violence when there could be a peaceful resolution. The whole process had taken a better part of three months, at the end of which Earth and Mars were allies.

A lot of Earth's off-world technology came from the Ice Warriors since their civilisation was a lot more advanced and well-travelled. They made for ideal allies, being one of the most honourable races in the known universe. They valued bravery and fortitude, two qualities that Rose possessed in abundance.

Upon reaching Mars, Rose had been shown to cosy quarters inside the base. Skaldak had assured her that their hospitality was open to her. Rose had appreciated it but she had to quickly think of what she should do next.

A day after she had arrived on Mars, she met with Ssari and discussed her idea of travelling around the universe. Ssari was encouraging of the idea and offered Rose a choice of shuttles. While Rose would have loved to have taken Ssari up on that offer, the Ice Warrior ships were incredibly complex and not something she could learn as easily as she wanted.

Finally, Ssari told her about a Chula Warship that had crashed to Mars a while ago and had been kept in storage. Rose's spirits had lifted at the word 'Chula' but when she saw the ship, she had almost cheered with happiness.

It was an exact replica of Jack's ship, the one that had been destroyed. It was slightly beat up and would require some work but Rose was already in love with it. Ssari had offered to provide her with some technicians from the base to help but Rose had politely declined.

She knew that the rest of the Ice Warriors were still a bit mistrustful of her, just like they were of all Earthlings. She tried not to take it personally, and she knew that Skaldak and Ssari would not let any harm come to her.

So, Rose set to work on the Chula ship on her own. It was a lot of work. The exterior had needed a specific polish optimum for space travel as well as a new coat of paint. The interior was more or less intact but the computer programming had taken Rose a while to figure out. She had needed to consult some of Ssari's scientists to make sure that it worked properly.

However, the most crucial matter remained that of the fuel. The Ice Warrior technology had nothing that would be compatible with a Chula Warship and the ship could not move without fuel. After exhausting all her alternatives, Rose had finally given in and used the one thing that she had brought with her from Earth: the Purple Crystal of Avalon.

She had taken it from the Torchwood vault before her trip to New York and it had stayed in her pockets the whole time, ensuring that she would have a power source if she ever needed it. Rose knew Torchwood protocols like the back of her hand, along with every security measure in place. Stealing the crystal had been the easiest thing she had ever done.

The Chula Warship had to be modified quite significantly to make sure that the crystal could be used as a power source. Rose couldn't ask any of the Ice Warriors for help since she wanted to keep the crystal's existence a secret. Thankfully, Malcolm had started working on ways to harness the power source and Rose had been paying close attention to his work. While she was not an expert, it did not take her long to finish the modifications, especially since she had the ship's computer to help her.

The ship's computer was yet another matter. Rose remembered that Jack's ship had had a female interface which had also been the default setting for this ship. But with the help of the scientists, Rose had managed to create the interface identical to Mr. Spock. She had been half-tempted to name the ship USS Enterprise but in the end, settled on Serenity. No one would ever accuse her of not knowing her sci-fi.

Serenity was ready for her first voyage only a month and half after Rose's arrival on Mars. Rose had taken a round trip right to the edge of the solar system and back to Mars. The ship had been smooth and perfect, except for minor hitches that Rose had started to fix the minute she was back on Mars.

The Ice Warriors had explored almost the whole of Milky Way as well as a significant part of Andromeda, Circinus and Starburst galaxies. Their astral maps for the planets and satellites in the region were mostly accurate and the Chula ship was fitted with a translation circuit identical to what the Shadow proclamation used.

Money was a major issue but the Ice Warriors used the standard credits used on all planets in the nearby systems and galaxies. Rose had long ago opened a credit account and she only had to contact them to send her a new credit stick and she had her own money.

The ship could be stocked with food and rations at different pit stops throughout her travels and the interior had enough room for Rose to have a comfortable bed, galley and bathroom. It was not as good as the TARDIS but Rose suspected that nothing would ever quite be like it anyway. Her ship was the next best thing.

Three days after her first voyage, Serenity made her first off-planet stop after Rose landed on Majesticia. Ironically, the largest bar in the galaxy was said to be on Majesticia and Rose had to agree after seeing the 'Hungry Wolf'. It was the size of a small mall with large glass walls and muted, eclectic design.

Rose had immediately made her way to the bar. The friendly-looking, pretty bartender greeted her. "What can I do you for?" she asked.

"An appletini, please. With hypervodka instead of the normal vodka," Rose said.

"You got it," smirked the bartender, putting a coaster and empty glass in front of Rose. "So, what brings you here?"

"Just travelling," answered Rose. With a quick glance over at the bartender, she smiled. "I'm Rose."

"Astrid," she said with a bright grin. She emptied the cocktail shaker into Rose's glass and gave her a grin. "That's two credits."

Rose handed her the credit stick which Astrid scanned and handed back. "So, where do you come from?" she asked.

"Sto," answered Astrid as she started to wipe down the bar. "You?"

"Earth," said Rose. "What's Sto like?"

"Dull, for the most part," said Astrid as she poured lager for a green alien that Rose knew was an Orion android. "I have heard Earth is exciting."

Rose sipped her drink and made a noncommittal sound. "So, any places I should visit around here?"

"What are you after?" Astrid asked curiously.

"I dunno," Rose shrugged. "Some information, some exploring."

"Information?" Astrid asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Dimensional travel," said Rose, raising her eyebrows. Astrid looked curious as Rose slipped her fifteen credits.

"I'll keep my ear out," said Astrid, pocketing her hefty tip. "Any way to contact you?"

Rose pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket and scribbled down the frequency on which her ship could be contacted. "She's called Serenity," she added as she gave Astrid the paper.

"Alright," said Astrid, tucking the paper into the pocket of her apron. "I'll let you know if I hear anything."

With a grateful grin, Rose tossed her drink back and left the bar. Jack had told her that bars were the best place to get information and what better than the largest bar in the galaxy? Even if nothing turned up, Rose could be satisfied that she had put the feelers out.

She stayed on Majesticia for a few days, exploring some of the tall structures in their main city. She also managed to bungee jump off one of their tallest buildings. When she returned to Mars, she packed up the rest of her stuff and bid goodbye to Skaldak and Ssari.

"I am truly grateful for everything that you have done," said Rose.

"Your gratitude is unnecessary," said Skaldak.

"It was an honour to have you as our guest," added Ssari. "Know this, Rose Tyler, you are always welcome to our planet."

Rose saluted them both respectfully. "Thank you," she said. "I hope we see each other soon."

The Ice Warriors returned her salute and Rose felt tears prick her eyes. They had gone above and beyond everything to help her and Rose would always hold them in the greatest regard. Bidding them a final goodbye, Rose entered her ship and took off from Mars.

There was a whole universe for her to explore, and while not the TARDIS, she still had a beautiful ship to do that.

~

Astrid Peth had been a bartender ever since she had been of legal age to serve alcohol. Before coming to Majesticia, she had tended a bar on Sto. As such, she had learned to develop a rapport with people that she talked to.

When Rose of Serenity had arrived on Majesticia and spoken to Astrid, she had felt a sense of kinship with the other girl. Rose Tyler appeared younger than Astrid but in some ways, felt so much older. There was a sadness about her that invoked the protective instinct in Astrid.

So when she asked to be informed about dimensional travel, Astrid dismissed the feeling of disbelief. The universe was a vast place and who knew maybe there really were different dimensions. She would have done it even without the tip that Rose had given her, just because she liked the girl.

Majesticia was a large place and species of all kinds came to the bar at any given time. It was only about four months later since Rose's first visit to the Hungry Wolf that Astrid heard something about dimensional travel.

Immediately, she sent word to Serenity.

~

For her part, Rose was enjoying her travels so far. She had visited various planets, asteroids and satellites in the four months since she had left Mars. Trouble inevitably always found her and she had a grand old time dashing about and saving the world like before.

It made her miss the Doctor terribly. Some days, she would reach for his hand without even thinking before being swamped by a feeling of sudden loneliness. She considered doing what the Doctor did, finding people to travel with but her ship was not large enough and she preferred her solitary existence.

She did have bad days. Sometimes she would land on a place where they would be a raging war or poverty or famine, sometimes she could not save the people that she met and sometimes, it was her own inexperience that caused the conflict to start in the first place.

She made frequent trips to Majesticia, not just to see if Astrid had any leads but also because she made a perfect appletini. She had also spread the word around one or two other bars whose bartenders she trusted enough.

It had been a long shot to do that but all her doubts were cleared when Astrid contacted her.

"Majesticia to Serenity. Majesticia to Serenity. Come in please, Rose."

Rose had been writing about her latest trip to the plains of Meadowsweet where flowers as tall as her grew in the fields. She closed her diary and picked up her radio. "Majesticia, this is Serenity. Astrid, is that you?"

"Rose, how far out are you from Majesticia?"

"A day, maybe less," answered Rose with a quick look at her navigation system. "Why?"

"I have some information on the matter we discussed. Get here as quick as you can."

Rose could feel her heart thudding as she heard Astrid's words. "Right," she said finally. "I'll be there in a few hours. Serenity out."

The connection went silent and Rose sat still for a moment before jumping into action. She set the course for Majesticia and applied for clearance from the Space Traffic Control in the galaxy. The journey would take her less than 12 hours and it was a mostly smooth path with limited asteroid belts that would need careful flying.

"Captain Rose Tyler, the Space Traffic Control has given a green light for the course."

"Thank you, Mr. Spock," said Rose. "Steady as she goes then." She put her feet up and grinned to herself. "I've always wanted to say that."


	12. Chapter 11

Rose parked Serenity and climbed out of the ship. It was night time on Majesticia and Rose drew her new blue leather jacket closer as she walked over to the Hungry Wolf. The bar was warm and vibrant as ever and Rose spotted Astrid tending the bar in her usual section.

She waved at her and Astrid waved back enthusiastically. "I'm taking my break now, Rick," Astrid told the sour-faced manager and left the bar to come up to Rose. "Hiya! Love the new haircut!"

Rose ran a hand through the shorter strands of her hair and chuckled. It was now just past her shoulder blades instead of the long hair she'd previously had. "Felt like a change," she said. "How are you?"

"Blessed, as always," chimed Astrid. "Anyway, I have something for you. This way, come on!"

Rose followed Astrid as she led her through a door labelled 'STAFF ONLY'. It led to a narrow hallway that held a spiralling staircase. Astrid went first, climbing the precarious steps and Rose followed after her. On the next landing there were rows of plain white doors.

"Staff quarters," explained Astrid. "Sometimes it is too tiring to go all the way back home."

Rose nodded understandingly as Astrid led her to #9. Astrid smiled widely at her and opened the door slowly. Rose squinted past the darkness of the room and saw a man passed out on the futon in the room. Astrid turned on a dim light and Rose saw his face.

A loud gasp escaped her. She was staring at the unconscious form of Captain Jack Harkness.

~

_Two days ago…_

"Three hypervodkas, please."

Astrid raised her eyebrows at the handsome man. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yep," he nodded, his movements a bit sluggish because of the two hypervodkas he had already drunk. "Did you know I once drank five hypervodkas?" he said. "Woke up in bed with both of my executioners."

"Lucky you," said Astrid with a small grin. "How about you drink one, and I'll pour you the next two if you stay awake?"

"You, ma'am, are on," he declared.

Astrid hid a smile and put a drink in front of him. "So, any reason why you are drinking five hypervodkas? More executioners coming after you or something?"

He laughed and a loud hiccup escaped his mouth. "Whoops," he grinned. "Nah, no more executions. There is no one in this universe that I know."

"Everyone's got someone," said Astrid, thinking that he sounded sad underneath all the bluster.

"Not me," he said mournfully. "Left everything behind. Big mistake."

Astrid felt sympathy well in her heart. "How about you have the next one on me?" she suggested, starting to prepare a fresh drink for him.

He raised his glass in acknowledgement and in doing so, swayed precariously in his seat. Astrid decided to cut him off for the night and went to fetch some water when he spoke again. "You know, I never imagined dimensional travel to be this complicated," he confessed.

Astrid nearly dropped the glass of water. "Wh-what?" she asked, wondering if she had heard right.

"Different universes," he waved carelessly. "Don't ever make the mistake of travelling between them on a whim. That's all I'm saying."

Astrid stared at him, before making up her mind quickly. "You got a bed for the night?" she asked.

"You offering?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows drunkenly.

Astrid smiled tentatively. "I have a spare room above the bar," she said. She had no intention of falling into bed with him but she had to tell Rose at once. Besides the man was in no shape to go anywhere. "Come on," she said, taking his arm. "I'll show you."

~

Rose was sure she was not dreaming, yet here he was; Jack, just as she remembered him. He looked exactly the same, but he was dressed in clothes that she was sure he had picked up at a costume shop. Tight black trousers, a white frilly dress shirt and a double-breasted navy leather coat made for a very bizarre look.

"He's been in and out of consciousness for the past two days," said Astrid, breaking through Rose's thoughts.

"Did he give a name?" Rose asked. It was very, very likely that it was a parallel version of Jack.

"Called himself John Hart," said Astrid.

Rose sucked in a breath through her teeth. Jack had once offered to tell her his real name but she had refused. She knew him as Captain Jack Harkness, just like she knew the Doctor by his title. Real names wouldn't change anything she ever thought of them. She would love them both in her own way, just as she hoped they would love her.

"Did he say anything else about himself?" she asked, hating the part of herself that was clinging onto the hope that this was the same Jack that she knew or at least, the one she would one day know.

"He said something about not knowing anyone in this universe," said Astrid, frowning lightly. "And that dimensional travel shouldn't be taken lightly." Rose could feel her heart pounding in her chest even before Astrid said the next part. "He said that he did wake up in bed with both his executioners once."

Rose couldn't help it; she burst into laughter. That story had been told and retold so many times in the TARDIS that she and the Doctor had started to consider it the most important story of Jack Harkness's not-so excellent sexual escapades.

Her laughter startled Jack who opened his eyes blearily. "Morning ladies," he greeted, smiling sleepily. "I don't wanna be rude but I think I would definitely have remembered being with the two of you when I went to sleep."

Astrid laughed while Rose merely raised her eyebrows. Oh yes, this had to be him. The multiverse could not survive with more than one of him. "John, this is Rose. She has something to discuss with you," said Astrid. "I have to go back to work."

"Thanks for this Astrid," said Rose. "You have helped more than you can imagine," she added as she hugged Astrid.

"I am glad to hear it," said Astrid, surprised by the gesture. "Hope it proves helpful."

"I have no doubt," said Rose, and Astrid nodded as she left the room.

Jack was looking confused. "Did I miss something?" he asked.

"I'm Rose Tyler," she said, sitting down in a chair opposite his futon.

He sat up and squinted at her. "Captain John Hart," he said.

"Right," she said. "Heard you were talking about dimensional travel."

His hand moved subtly to his belt and Rose mirrored the movement subconsciously which his sharp eyes registered. "Who wants to know?" he asked, keeping an eye on her hand since it was obvious that she was armed as well.

"Not the Time Agency, if that's what you are wondering," she said, remembering that he had thought her to be a Time Agent the first time they had met.

At the mention of the Time Agency, he pulled out his gun and pointed it at her. Instead of giving in to the reflex to pulling out her gun too, Rose raised her arms in surrender. "Who are you?" he demanded sharply, all traces of drunkenness gone from his demeanour.

"Calm down, Captain," she said, looking warily at his gun. There was still a possibility that he was a parallel Jack. Similar incidents did often happen in parallel universes. Her Dad had got her Mum's name wrong during their weddings in both universes. "Look, I am just curious about dimensional travel."

"Nice try," he snapped. "This is still the 21st century the last time I checked. How can you know about the Time Agency?"

"Because I knew a Time Agent," she said.

"Try again," he said, glaring at her. "The Time Agency is only ever formed in one universe."

Rose's arms fell to her sides, her breath whooshing out of her. "You're from the right universe," she said, sounding shocked. "You really are Jack."

Jack lowered the gun slightly. "Are you alright?" he asked her, confused by the tears in her eyes. "Rose?"

Rose blinked back the tears and stared at him. "Will you believe me if I said that we met in your future but my past?"

Jack looked disbelieving of the idea but her eyes were so earnest that his gun had already lowered itself. "Prove it," he said, his voice challenging but not as sharp as before.

Rose racked her brains, trying to remember something he had told her, something that wouldn't be an official record. "Brakovitch," she said suddenly, remembering a restaurant in Cardiff. "You were on this island with these things with tusks. Six feet tall," said Rose, trying to remember. "There were 15 of you. Naked," she added cheekily as she saw a smile starting to blossom on his face.

"We were running," he started to continue. "Brakovitch fell and I turned to him and said…"

"I knew we should have turned left," finished Rose, starting to giggle.

Jack laughed loudly. "Okay, so I do believe you," he said. "Still isn't clear how you know me."

"I told you, we met. Well, for you, we will meet," she said, already starting to think how to deal with the potential paradox that they were in. "How did you end up in this universe anyway?" she asked.

"I could ask you the same," he said.

"But considering that I am from your future, it would be better if we kept my story secret," she said.

He had to admit that she had a point. "So, when you say 'from my future'… just how close are we?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

Rose laughed. "Stop it," she chided. "And stop changing the subject, Jack."

"That's twice you have called me 'Jack'," he said.

Rose could have smacked herself for the slip. "Sorry, force of habit," she said, hoping he would leave it alone. "You were saying how you got here?"

He gave a slow nod. "Yeah, well, I had a bone to pick with the Time Agency, you see," he said.

"Because they took your memories," nodded Rose.

He was only a little surprised that she knew that. "Yes, because of that. So, I stole some stuff from them. Couple of vortex manipulators, some retcon and then there was this." He put down a smaller wrist gadget that had a silver glow coming from it.

"What is it?" asked Rose.

"A prototype for dimensional travel," said Jack. "But foolishly, I decided to operate it to see how it worked."

"And you got stuck here," guessed Rose. "Why haven't you gone back yet?"

"Because it ran out of juice," he said. "I haven't found a compatible power source yet."

"Right," said Rose, knowing that she had a way to fix that. "But, how could you travel between universes? I thought the walls were sealed."

"They are," he nodded. "This technology is a bit different. Imagine if the universe was like a balloon. Travelling between dimensions would be like using a needle for the ride into the balloon."

"It would pop," said Rose logically.

"Yes it would," he nodded. "Unless, you were very, very careful in inserting the needle all the way inside. Here," he said, pressing a few buttons on his vortex manipulator. A hologram of a balloon rose up from it and a holographic pin entered it slowly, without popping the balloon. Rose could have understood it even without the demonstration; she had seen a needle being inserted into a balloon without it bursting before.

"Right, so I get how the gadget works," said Rose. "Is it safe to use?"

"Mostly, yes," he said. "Be a bit better if you had a ship."

"How can it work in a ship?" she asked.

"It can be programmed in," he said.

Rose fell silent for a while as she thought her way through. "If I find a power source and a ship for us, will you be willing to take me back with you?" she proposed cautiously. Memories of Jack as a conman rose in her mind but she batted them away.

Jack stared at her. "You will get a ship AND a power source?" he asked disbelievingly. "How?"

"I have my ways," she said, deciding to err on the side of caution. "What do you say?" she asked, extending her hand.

Jack stared at her hand before clasping it with his. "Deal," he said.

Rose shook his hand firmly. "Fine," she said. "Get cleaned up and meet me downstairs. We have a universe to cross."

Jack smiled and saluted smartly. "Yes, ma'am."

~

Rose made her way downstairs and saw Astrid serving a few customers. She sat down at the bar until Astrid was free.

"Hey," said Astrid. "How did it go?"

"It looks like it might work," said Rose. "Thank you, Astrid. Truly."

"That's what friends are for," said Astrid with a smile.

"I have one last favour to ask," said Rose, leaning in close to her.

"Anything," said Astrid. Rose whispered her request to her and Astrid raised her eyebrows. "How many?" she asked.

"Just one should be enough," said Rose.

Astrid nodded. "I'll be back in a moment," she said.

Rose nodded and counted out a few credits to tip Astrid. She returned and then slipped Rose the thing that she had asked for. "Will I ever see you again?" asked Astrid.

"Not if everything goes to plan," said Rose, pocketing the small tube that Astrid had given her.

Astrid nodded slowly. "Then I wish you all the luck, Rose," said Astrid.

"Thanks Astrid," said Rose, seeing Jack enter the bar, looking much more put together than before.

Astrid paused for a moment before tapping Rose's shoulder. "There is a tradition on Sto," she said. "When someone prepares to leave on journey."

"Oh? What?" asked Rose, with interest. Astrid smiled and leaned over the bar to kiss Rose briefly. Rose was slightly startled but she kissed her back gently.

"Goodbye," said Astrid, pulling away and smiling at her.

Rose nodded, looking slightly dazed. "Thanks," she said, clearing her throat. "Goodbye, Astrid."

"Ready to go?" asked Jack, his gaze a little leering as he walked up to them.

Rose grabbed his arm. "Come on," she said. "We have a universe to go back to."


	13. Chapter 12

Rose led Jack out of the Hungry Wolf and towards the parking compound where she had parked Serenity. Her mind was whirring at a thousand miles an hour. Not only did she have to make sure that the dimensional travel was actually successful, she also had to deal with Jack. And she had no doubt that he would fight her every step of the way with the last part.

"So, you have a ship?" Jack inquired.

"Yeah," said Rose shortly.

"What kind?" asked Jack, sounding interested.

"Chula Warship," answered Rose.

Jack gave a low whistle. "Nice," he said.

"Thanks," said Rose absently.

"And what's this about a fuel source?" he asked.

"In time," answered Rose. They passed a credit cashpoint and Rose realised that it would be worthwhile to empty out her account. If she was unsuccessful, she could always deposit it back. Making sure to keep Jack in sight, she withdrew all the credits from her account.

Jack raised an eyebrow at her actions but was suspiciously quiet as Rose continued to lead the way to her ship. "Here we go," she said, nodding towards Serenity.

"She's beautiful," said Jack, running a hand over the exterior.

Rose couldn't help but beam with pride. "Yeah," she said. "I had to do some work on her but she's brilliant. Do you think she can take us across dimensions?"

Jack gave a quick nod. "I will have to make sure that the systems are compatible but Chula ships have dealt with time travel better than anything. Probably be no different with dimensional travel," he said.

"Fine," said Rose as she entered the passcode to open the ship. Jack read the code over her shoulder and Rose could have smacked herself for not being more careful. The damage was done but she was determined to be more cautious when going through the rest of the ship's protocols. No way was she giving him access to everything. The memory of a certain Chula ambulance was still bright and burning in her mind.

"You still got a hangover?" Rose asked as they entered the ship.

"I have a bit of a headache," he nodded.

Rose nodded and sealed the ship before activating the nanogenes. Jack gasped as the golden particles surrounded his head and in seconds, his headache was non-existent. "Handy," he commented when they dissipated.

"Love those things," said Rose with a smile Jack didn't understand. "Let's see that dimensional travel gadget of yours."

Jack sat down at the edge of Rose's bed and handed her the gadget. Rose examined it quickly. "Mr. Spock, analyse," she ordered.

A beam lit up as Mr. Spock scanned the device. "The device appears to be manufactured in the 51st century according to Earth's time systems. It was designed by an organisation named 'The Time Agency' founded by humans of the period. No more information exists in my systems, Captain."

"Thank you, Mr. Spock," said Rose. "Well?" she asked Jack.

"Your computer is right," said Jack. "That information is programmed into the gadget. And your computer will be programmed for this universe so it doesn't have sufficient information. Interesting interface, by the way. Is Spock your boyfriend?"

Rose almost giggled at the memory of her telling Jack that the Doctor was called Mr. Spock back during the Blitz. "No," she said, smiling despite herself. "It's a character from…never mind. Point is, it's up to you to programme this thing into Serenity."

"With pleasure," winked Jack as he held his hand out. "May I?"

Rose gave him the gadget and got up from the Captain's chair. "I'm going to freshen up. Do your thing."

He saluted her and got to work. Rose ducked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. She had to take a few breaths to calm down. Too many things were happening at once. She hadn't expected to find a way back so soon. And she hadn't expected Jack at all. Even if he wasn't the Jack she knew yet.

She splashed some cold water on her face and carefully redid her makeup, even adding a dab of her new lipstick. On the off-chance that this didn't work, at least she would leave a good-looking corpse. Rolling her eyes at her own vanity, she breathed deeply, preparing herself for what was coming next.

"Rose?" came Jack's voice. "Your security protocols need to be dealt with."

"Be out in a minute," said Rose and after a final look at herself, she left the bathroom and returned to her ship's controls. She shot Jack a look to get out of her chair and quickly entered her protocols into the ship's computer.

"I still need a power source for this," said Jack. "The gadget is connected but it will need power to calibrate."

"Yeah," said Rose. "I'll get it."

She opened the locker under her bed and pulled out a box. Sighing to herself and being mindful of Jack's curious gaze on her back, she opened it and picked up the Purple Crystal of Avalon. Jack's eyes were wide when she walked up to him with it.

"Well, damn," he said, his voice a bit hoarse. "That's one hell of a power source, Rosie."

"I know, and don't call me Rosie," she said. "Will it work?"

Jack looked at her for permission to pick up the crystal and Rose nodded at him to go ahead. He took it from her hand and looked at it with the same look that Rose knew had been on her own face when she had seen the Koh-I-Noor. "This will work," he said. He carefully placed the crystal on top of the dimensional travel gadget and the sluggish silver light began to brighten.

Rose and Jack exchanged triumphant looks. "How long will it take to charge?" asked Rose, slightly breathlessly.

"At this rate?" asked Jack. "Maybe ten minutes."

"Then we should prepare for the flight," said Rose. "What coordinates are we using?"

"A safe location in a relatively safe time period. I suggest the 20th century around Australia. Nice time, quiet, and less populated than the rest of the Earth," said Jack.

"Fine," said Rose. "Precise coordinates?"

Jack rattled off the space coordinates and once the gadget had charged and beeped, he entered the time coordinates. Before he could say anything, Rose plucked off the crystal and tucked it inside her jacket. Jack followed the movement but didn't say anything. "We should strap in," he said. "This isn't going to be smooth."

Rose settled into her chair and strapped on the harness. Jack looked a bit put out at not getting the Captain's chair but he kept his grumbling to himself as he lay down on Rose's bed and used the harnesses against the wall to keep himself in place.

"Ready?" asked Rose.

"Ready," he nodded.

"Lift off in: 5-4-3-2-1!"

Serenity rose into the air and fired off into the atmosphere of Majesticia. The flight was smooth but as they reached open space, Rose switched the controls to the dimensional gadget. The ship gave a lurch, and with a loud whine, the speedometer began to rise.

Rose knew that the open space in their projected trajectory had no hurdles for several light years but it was still jarring to not have any visual. They were going so fast now that everything was just a blur of light. The temperature inside the ship began to rise and the pressure started to become a bit uncomfortable.

And suddenly, the ship braked violently. Rose had to steady herself from banging her head against the ship's controls. The whiplash had been strong but the harness had helped in keeping her securely strapped.

Rose panted as she removed the harness and looked at her surroundings. They were in the atmosphere and she could see the familiar blue-green planet in the distance below. Knowing that their trajectory from Majesticia had not been going towards Earth, it could only mean one thing: the ship had arrived at the coordinates entered. They had come across the dimensions.

"We did it," said Rose in a low disbelieving voice. "WE DID IT!"

There was a click of a gun behind her and Rose raised her arms to the side. "Stand up slowly and turn around," ordered Jack.

Rose stood up, barely concealed fury on her face as she turned around. "You could at least wait until we confirm everything," she said crossly.

"Don't need to," said Jack, still holding his gun at her. "Can't you feel it? This universe just feels right."

As much as Rose wanted to strangle him right now, she had to admit he was right. There was something about being here that felt just right. She didn't answer though. "You gonna kill me now?" she asked.

"It's nothing personal," he said. "I like your ship and the crystal is a sweet bonus."

Rose smiled. "Should have known, really," she said, sounding oddly sad.

"Did you really think I would believe your story of knowing me in the future? Do you know how many times I have used the same play?" he asked.

"I have no doubt," said Rose. "Can I at least get a kiss before I die?"

Jack grinned. "Why not?" he asked and held his gun steady at her heart as he tilted his head and pressed his lips to hers. Rose opened her mouth to deepen the kiss, keeping her hands firmly in the air. Jack kissed back quite enthusiastically and pulled away with a smile. And then fell to the floor unconscious.

Rose rolled her eyes as she wiped her mouth and kicked his gun away. "I really hoped that it wouldn't come to this," she murmured. "Oh Jack," she bent down and stroked his face gently. "I am so sorry."

She quickly hauled his unconscious form off the floor and onto her bed. Using the harnesses, she tied him down. The lipstick that Astrid had given her had worked perfectly and it would keep him knocked out for an hour at least.

As soon as Jack was secure, Rose piloted Serenity to Earth's surface. Jack had been right about Australia being not too crowded. She found a long empty stretch of land, away from prying eyes where she landed the ship.

Then she quickly rifled through Jack's stuff and found the retcon pills and a couple of vortex manipulators. She knew that her ship would be too conspicuous on her journey to find the Doctor and with a heavy heart, had to come to the decision of leaving it behind.

She pulled out a sturdy messenger bag from her locker and packed a few essentials in it, along with the crystal and the credits that she had emptied from her account. She picked up one of the vortex manipulators and affixed it to her wrist. Jack, her Jack, had once shown her how to work it and it only took her a few moments to figure out how this one operated.

Her hour was nearly up when Rose wiped Spock's interface from the ship. The ship would no longer be hers and she had to make sure that it was a blank slate by the time Jack awoke. As much as she was currently annoyed with him, what with him trying to kill her and all, she still knew that he was a good man underneath and it would take her younger self to see that in him. She decided to leave the ship to him. After all, he had been in possession of a Chula ship before.

She heard a groan from the bed and Rose picked up the drink she had prepared with the retcon in it. It had taken a few questions to Spock to determine the exact amount of pills to be used. The current amount she had would make sure that Jack slept for a few more hours and when he awoke, he would have no memory of the past day. Most likely, he would think that he had crossed the dimensions while being half-drunk or something. No memory of Rose.

As he began to stir, Rose held the drink to his lips and made sure that he swallowed all of it. His eyes opened briefly and he caught a quick look before the retcon took hold and he collapsed back on the bed. Rose waited a few moments before undoing the harnesses from around him.

Casting a last look at her beloved ship and the past version of her beloved friend, Rose climbed out of the ship. It was night time in Australia and Rose inhaled the fresh air with a nostalgic sigh. Nothing beat the feeling of being home at last.

She slung the messenger bag over her shoulder and walked some distance away from the ship. Knowing exactly where she wanted to be, Rose entered the right space and time coordinates into the vortex manipulator. With a quick press of the button and a flash of bright blue, Rose Tyler was gone.

Back on Serenity, Jack awoke slowly and looked around. He couldn't remember a thing. That wasn't an unfamiliar feeling, so he set about trying to piece together what had happened. "Ship computer," he called, realising that he was in a Chula warship.

"Ship's computer primed and ready for orders," a female voice answered.

Jack grinned. Bad luck to whoever had decided to leave him here with their unattended ship. He was going to hijack it and he could always find a way to mess with the Time Agency if he had a proper ship. All he needed was an alias and he was good to go. Twentieth century was a good place as any to find a fake name.

He tried to remember who the ship's original Captain had been but all he could remember was that she had been really gorgeous. With a shrug, Jack set the course for England. He would get an alias and then maybe he would head to Pompeii for vacation. Always a con to be had there if he remembered to set the alarm for Volcano Day.


	14. Chapter 13

Rose sat down on the cold park bench and gazed listlessly into the distance. London was the same as ever, even back in her home universe. No one paid her any mind, just an odd woman sitting at a park bench when it was freezing cold outside.

She looked up at the sky briefly and saw the stars obscured by the thick clouds. It had already started to drizzle and it wouldn't be long until the showers would come pouring down. Rose turned back to the monument in front of her. The names were hard to read from the distance that she was sitting at, but somehow she could see her own name like it was a beacon in the sea of names.

She was half tempted to go and see it properly but she hadn't mustered up enough courage in the past hour that she had been here. She was still trying to decide if her decision to visit the Canary Wharf memorial at Hyde Park was a wise move or an incredibly stupid one. Right now, she was leaning towards morbid and useless.

Being back in this universe was something she had hoped for from the first moment that the walls between the universes had closed. Somehow she had hoped that it would be the Doctor who would come and get her. But as years went on, she knew that sitting around and waiting for things to happen was no longer her style.

She hadn't completely thought out how she was going to find the Doctor. For one, even with his frequent trips to Earth he was still hard to track. Add time travel to that and things just became a lot more complicated. It wasn't like she could fire off a beacon into the sky like a bat-signal.

The thought made her chuckle and she shook her head at herself. At least she still had her sense of humour intact. She could try and track him through his old friends but she didn't know of any except Sarah Jane. Perhaps that would be a good place to start, Rose mused.

The vortex manipulator beeped and Rose jumped slightly. She had almost forgotten that she had set an alarm for midnight. It was April 27 and she was twenty-six years old. Or well, she had been alive for twenty-six years. Give or take a few months here and there.

Of course, this being 2007 still meant that she was only twenty-one. Rose stopped thinking about it because it was giving her a headache.

The park was almost empty by now and Rose wondered if she could find a place to stay for the night when she saw someone approaching the monument through the shadows.

Her instincts went on alert and she sat up straighter, keeping a wary eye on the shadowy figure. She was certain it was a man but not someone she recognised. He was looking at the monument carefully but then turned around abruptly and looked towards Rose.

His face was still obscured by shadows so Rose couldn't be certain if he really was looking at her specifically or just in her general direction. But then he started walking towards her and Rose's fists clenched involuntarily. Her fight or flight response was gearing up to its full potential when the man finally reached her.

"Hello!"

Rose was taken aback by the bright grin and the beaming face of the stranger. "Hi," she said shortly, her fists loosening.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked, pointing to the empty space on the bench.

Rose shrugged and he grinned and sat down next to her. "Nice night, isn't it?" he said after a moment of quiet.

She looked at him incredulously. It was an utterly miserable night; cold and wet. What was he on? "Uh-huh," she said noncommittally. His presence seemed familiar and Rose was trying to remember if she had known him in the parallel world. Sometimes you trusted people intuitively if you had known different versions of them. "You came to visit the monument?" she asked, changing the subject to something less awkward.

"Yes," he said.

"Someone you lost?" she asked sympathetically.

"Yes, but I found her again," he said, sounding happier.

Rose smiled at him, remembering the Doctor telling her how some people had been declared dead after going missing. To hear that some of them were reunited with their loved ones warmed her heart. "That's great," said Rose. "So, why are you here? If you don't mind me asking…" she added hastily.

He turned to look at her and Rose had to wonder again where she knew him from. "It's a reminder," he said, his eyes darkening with unspeakable sorrow. "Sometimes you think you know how important someone is but when you lose them, you realise that they were far more precious than you could have imagined. Even after getting them back, the fear of losing them again hurts very much."

"Once bitten, twice shy," murmured Rose, looking back at the monument. "Yeah, know what that's like."

"Did you lose someone too?" he asked.

"In a way," she answered, without looking at him. "But," she added in a stronger voice. "I am going to find him."

She could practically hear him smiling. "Good on you," he said, sounding proud.

Rose looked at him and was struck again by that feeling of familiarity. "Have we met?" she asked. "Sorry, it's just…you seem very familiar."

He grinned. "You never know. Stranger things have happened," he said enigmatically.

Rose raised her eyebrows in question. "That's not an answer," she pointed out.

"No," he agreed but didn't say anything else. He reached into his tweed jacket and pulled out a single long-stemmed rose. "I was going to leave this on the monument. But I think you should have it. For luck."

Rose was puzzled by the gesture but she took the rose from him. His fingers brushed hers and Rose felt a sense of déjà vu wash over her. "Who are you?" she asked, feeling a bit light-headed.

He smiled softly at her and pulled out something that looked like it was a sonic screwdriver, except that it lit up green at the end instead of blue. He held up her wrist with the vortex manipulator and fiddled with it briefly.

Rose could only stare at him as he finished his task. He held her wrist as tenderly as he would handle a fragile crystal and kept his eyes fixed on his work the whole time. When he did look up, Rose wondered how she couldn't have known right from the beginning.

"Doctor."

Cool lips pressed against her fingers in response and tears sprang to her eyes at the tender gesture. "Hello, Rose Tyler."

Rose let out a strangled sob and the Doctor made a shushing noise as he pulled her into his arms. "It's alright," he murmured into her hair. "It's alright, my precious girl. Everything will work out. I promise."

"I missed you. I missed you so much," she sobbed into his neck, tightening her grip around him.

He drew her so close that she was practically sitting on his lap. "I know. I missed you too. Oh Rose, you have no idea." Rose drew back to look at him and he smiled and wiped the tears off her cheeks. "Oh, there are so many things I want to tell you. But I can't. Not yet."

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused. Suddenly, her eyes went wide with realisation and she tried to disentangle herself from his arms but the Doctor made a noise of protest and tried to keep her where she was. "Reapers," she mumbled in protest, not being willing to fight him too hard. Even with a different body, being in his arms felt like being home.

"We are safe, I promise," he assured. "Now, will you please stop struggling and let me hold you?"

He said it so adorably that Rose couldn't help but laugh as she made herself comfortable in his lap. "Okay, I'll stay," she said, gazing at his new-new-new…actually she should ask how many 'new' she should add.

"I'm not telling," he said before she could even open her mouth. She looked at him in confusion and he grinned. "I didn't read your mind. Your face said it all."

"Why can't you tell me?" she asked.

"Because then it's not a surprise," he said like it was obvious. "Half the fun of regeneration is not knowing what you could end up with."

Rose had a sudden flashback to a Northern voice saying much of the same words and she stiffened slightly. The Doctor's eyes melted and he stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. Rose hurried to reassure him and grabbed his hand quickly, linking their fingers together.

"I missed this," she murmured quietly, looking down at their hands. "How much can you tell me?"

"Only that you will find me," he said. "I programmed your vortex manipulator to lock onto the TARDIS."

"What will that do?" Rose asked.

"It will take you to the locations where the TARDIS has been or will be," he said. "I'm sorry, that is the best I can do," he added apologetically.

"It's more than what I had an hour ago," said Rose gratefully. "Which face should I be on the lookout for?" she tried to keep her question light but couldn't quite hide the worry in her voice. It was one thing to run into a future Doctor but quite another to know that her old Doctor had died and changed into a new man without her knowing.

"The same one you knew," he said and smiled when he felt her sigh of relief. "I have taken the liberty of adding my old faces to your manipulator for future or past references."

Rose chuckled. "Seems like you thought of everything," she murmured. "I have to go, haven't I?"

"Not until you are ready," he said.

"That will be fun," said Rose sarcastically. "You and me sitting on a cold park bench in the rain, morbidly staring at the false monument of my death."

"Still not the strangest thing we have done," the Doctor pointed out.

Rose laughed. "Oh god, don't I know," she said, winking at him. "You're okay though, aren't you?" she asked, concerned.

He nodded with a loving smile. "Everything is okay. We are okay," he told her. "I know you have come very far already, Rose, but…"

"But there is more to go," sighed Rose as she finished his unsaid words. "Yeah, I know." She glanced at the vortex manipulator and saw new coordinates glowing back at her. When she looked back at the Doctor, she saw the worry in his eyes, mixed with reluctance at the prospect of letting her go.

Rose smiled tenderly at him as her eyes catalogued his new face. It was all sharp cheekbones and big chin but almost unconscionably young. The eyes were green from what she could tell in the dim light and the outfit was just as ridiculous as she would expect of the Doctor.

"I'll be fine," she said, sounding more confident than she was feeling.

He leaned up and kissed her forehead softly. "I'll be waiting," he promised.

Rose smiled. "I won't keep you waiting long," she said, a tad cheekily.

"Oh, I hope not," he said, giving her a quick wink.

Rose laughed as she stood up from his lap. The Doctor kept a grip on her hand as he stood, and Rose realised that he was still quite taller than her. "See you then, Doctor," she said, determined not to let him see the tears she could feel building at the back of her eyes.

"Rose Tyler…" He still said her name like it encompassed everything in his universe.

She gave a slight chuckle in response and winked at him. "Nice bowtie," she said, and before he could say anything else, she pressed the button on her vortex manipulator and vanished into the bright blue flash of light.

The Doctor laughed and adjusted the bowtie, preening at the praise. But the momentary glee vanished as he stared at the empty Hyde Park and let out a worried sigh.

The clouds rumbled above him before the rain came pelting down and he turned his back on the spot where Rose had vanished. With careful, measured steps, he started to trudge back towards the Thames where the TARDIS was parked.

Somewhere, somewhen, Rose Tyler was searching for her Doctor and he knew that she would find him. Because if there was one thing that he believed in, it was his Rose Tyler.


	15. Chapter 14

Rose opened her eyes and tried to fight the slightly disorientating feeling of time travel without a capsule. Her tears had frozen on her cheeks during the journey and she wiped at them hastily before chancing a quick look around.

For a moment she felt like she hadn't travelled at all since she was clearly still in London. But then her eyes noted the old-fashioned clothes of the people walking around the busy streets, and excitement bubbled in her heart.

She stepped out into the crowd carefully and as was typical of London, no one gave her a second glance. She was rather aware of the wide, fascinated smile on her face but she didn't care. This was what she lived for. To see things and days that were dead and gone, a hundred, thousand sunsets ago.

Rose was not following any particular route but she did notice when she entered a quieter part of town. There were fewer people around and Rose noticed a clock proclaiming it to be just past 4 in the afternoon. She passed a school and read its name as 'Coal Hill School'.

She continued down the road and turned off at an even quieter street. She reached a shop with a sign at the front where the evening newspaper's headline had her gaping. 'PRESIDENT KENNEDY ASSASSINATED'. A quick look at the date told her that it was in fact the day after the assassination. 23rd November, 1963.

Her memory flashed back to Clive's shed where her first Doctor's face had stood out among the crowds during the assassination. But that was thousands of miles away. Why was she in London?

She was brought out of her thoughts by someone scoffing quietly. Rose turned slightly and saw an old man watching the headline with a stern look on his face. He was dressed quite severely in a dark coat and an Astrakhan hat, with a cane in his hand.

"Absolutely ghastly," he declared.

"The assassination?" Rose asked, fascinated by him.

"Among other things," he sniffed and then did a double take when he looked properly at her. "You, young woman, should not be here."

Indignation overcame surprise and she glared at him. "What?"

"Those fabrics you are wearing are certainly not of this primitive era and that device strapped to your wrist is clearly some sort of a time travel mechanism. Highly backward too by the looks of it," he said, quite haughtily.

Rose couldn't help it, she laughed. "Oh, and you're an expert on time travel now, are you?" she demanded, already suspicious of who he might be. Her finger was itching to peruse the vortex manipulator's databanks to confirm her suspicions.

"As it happens, I am," he said, looking highly offended that she would presume otherwise.

"You wouldn't happen to be the Doctor, would you?" she asked, now almost completely sure.

His demeanour changed instantly. "Who sent you?" he demanded furiously.

"Who sent me what?" Rose couldn't stop the question before it slipped out.

For a moment, it looked like he might smile but the expression was replaced quite quickly with one of stern disapproval. "I have no patience for games, young lady," he said, straightening up with dignity. "Now, I shall ask again. If you have been sent by the Time Lords…"

"I haven't," said Rose hastily, her brain carefully noting the existence (and fear) of Time Lords. "Honest."

He peered into her eyes and nodded like he believed her. "Well then, how would you know who I am?" he demanded.

"Because I was looking for you," she said. "Not you, you. I mean, not this you. Obviously. Since we haven't even met yet." Rose snapped her mouth shut; she had been rambling. "Would it help if I said I was your companion in the future? Or will be, at least?"

"Companion?" he asked, incredulously. "What hogwash! Susan and I have no need for companions. Certainly not a human, as you so obviously are."

"Susan?" Rose asked, intrigued.

The Doctor hadn't meant to say her name, she could tell instantly. He went on the defensive. "I don't know who you are or what agency you work for but I am warning you, if you come near me or my granddaughter…"

Rose could feel her heart thudding. "Granddaughter?" she asked.

"My dear child, are you a parrot?" he demanded, sounding miffed.

Rose glared at him. "Oi, listen you grumpy git," she began. "If you are the Doctor, then you are obviously not the right one. So, I'll be on my way now."

He seemed taken aback at her abrupt manner and narrowed his eyes. "Time travel is a dangerous business, young lady…"

"Stow the lecture. I know what I am doing," snapped Rose, pressing the buttons on her vortex manipulator to search for the new coordinates. Her anger began to dissipate as she found the new coordinates. "I did not mean to alarm you, nor did I have any intention of harming you or your….granddaughter, Doctor," she said, in a slightly softer voice.

The Doctor's harshness melted a little at her tone and he gazed thoughtfully at her. "You said I wasn't the right one," he said, a contemplative gleam appearing in his blue eyes.

"I shouldn't tell you and I know there are rules against this sort of thing, but this is something I have to do," she said, sounding determined. "I have to go."

"Wait," he said, and Rose paused with her finger hovering over the buttons of the vortex manipulator. "Your name. Tell me your name."

She smiled and the Doctor was shocked by the sincere regret in her eyes. "See you then, Doctor."

A flash of bright blue and the strange young girl with the golden hair and the deep blue leather jacket was gone. The Doctor stood transfixed, his mind whirling with possibilities. Long buried time senses threatened to rise to the surface so he could figure out the mystery of the girl but he clamped them down. No, he shouldn't interfere. He couldn't. He had to leave this alone.

Yet he couldn't quite understand how he was supposed to do that. Why was another time traveller so interested in finding him? The right him, she had said. Who was she that presumed to know him so well? The Doctor did not like the implications. Not one bit.

In his indignation, he didn't realise that he had arrived back at 76, Totter's Lane where his ship was parked, disguised as a Police Public Call Box in I. M. Foreman's junkyard. An awful exterior shell as far as he was concerned. He started to open the doors but stopped when he heard a noise behind him.

He had already been shaken up enough today which meant that he was hyper vigilant and feeling considerably unforgiving. A man emerged from the shadows and the Doctor looked sharply at him. "What are you doing here?" he demanded, narrowing his eyes.

"We're looking for a young girl," answered the man.

The Doctor realised that there was only a slim chance of getting out of this corner and he would not be leaving any witnesses behind. "We?" he asked, certain that this was about Susan. 

~

Rose was steadier on her feet as she landed. It was warmer here and it took her only a moment to realise that she was in New York City. Specifically, in Central Park. Smiling to herself, she sat down at one of the park benches and thought back to her encounter with the Doctor.

She had been thrown off by his age, that much was certain. She knew he was over 900 (and suspected he was quite older than that), but to actually see him as an old man had been slightly disconcerting. She pressed the buttons on her vortex manipulator to open the databank and saw a folder labelled 'Doctor'.

Feeling a bit excited, she pressed the button to open it and gasped when a hologram of the man she had been talking to mere minutes ago (relatively speaking) burst out of the vortex manipulator and appeared in front of her.

'One' it said next to his body. Taking a deep breath, she clicked next and saw a slightly younger man with a Beatles haircut and an ill-fitting black coat, holding a recorder in his hands. This had to be 'Two'.

Gaining some of her excitement back, Rose clicked 'next'. An older man, dressed in a frilly shirt, smoked velvet jacket and a cape. A younger man, with dark curly hair, bohemian clothes and a scarf that defied description. A young blond man, dressed in a beige and white cricket uniform with a celery attached to the lapel of his beige coat.

An older man with curly golden hair and a coat that had to be the technicolour coat that Andrew Lloyd Webber had written the musical about. An even older man, with shorter, darker hair and a pullover with question marks sewn all over it. A younger man with curly brown hair, very dashing, and dressed like an Edwardian gentleman.

The next one that came up, made Rose pause. It was him. Her first Doctor. With his manic grin and big blue eyes, and those trophy handle ears and big nose. Rose felt tears gathering in her eyes as she involuntarily extended a hand towards him, before catching herself and closing her eyes in pain. She missed him and his gruff, Northern voice. The hologram made her heart twist as it reminded her of Emergency Programme One.

Feeling torn between not wanting to relive that memory and not wanting to see him go yet, Rose's fingers shook as she pressed 'next'. She knew who had to be next but she couldn't help but beam as she saw her Doctor with the hair (really, really great hair), pinstriped suit and trainers.

It wouldn't show her which Doctor came next and Rose had no idea who the future Doctor had been. But as she turned off the vortex manipulator and wiped a few stray tears off her cheek, she felt slightly better.

Central Park was as beautiful as ever, and Rose felt her spirits rise as she walked quietly through one of the paths. She had only been to the Central Park in Pete's universe once and she had been chasing a Hoix then. With a red bucket, not blue.

She arrived at a small playground with a swing set and a sandbox and found a boy kicking a football around. He looked to be around five and had a full head of messy dark hair. Rose realised that he appeared to be by himself and walked over to him in concern.

"Hello?"

He looked at her with big brown eyes full of curiosity. "Hi," he said, looking a bit wary.

"Are you on your own?" Rose asked.

He nodded quickly. "My Daddy is just around the corner," he added and then tilted his head towards her. "You talk like him," he said.

Rose smiled, wondering if the boy had an English father. "What's your name?" she asked.

"Anthony Williams," he answered. "But everyone calls me Tony."

Rose felt her heart squeeze painfully in her chest. "My brother was called Tony too," she said, missing her little brother immensely.

"Where is he now?" asked Anthony.

"Back home," answered Rose.

"Why aren't you home too?" he asked curiously.

Rose smiled and looked away. "I'm looking for my friend," she said. "He's very far away and I don't know how long it will be until I find him."

"My mommy says that the universe is big and-and," he screwed up his forehead trying to remember the difficult words. "Compli-cat-ed. But sometimes, impossi-impossible things happen and they are miracles. You will find your friend," he said earnestly.

Rose beamed at him. "She sounds great, your mum," she said. "That actually does sound like something my friend would say," she said contemplatively. She looked back at Anthony who was innocently kicking the football, unaware of the impact that his words had on Rose. "What year is it, Tony?" she asked.

"1951," he answered. "Are you a time traveller?" he asked curiously.

Rose stared at him. "What makes you say that?" she asked.

"Because you don't know what date it is, silly," he smiled.

Rose smiled at Anthony. "Well, I am a time traveller but you can't tell anyone," she said. He nodded back eagerly and Rose's grin widened with fondness for the boy. "I should go. Your dad will be back for you soon."

"Okay," he nodded and grinned toothily at her. "It was nice to meet you."

"It was nice to meet you too," she said, meaning every word. "Anthony Williams, I'll remember you."

He smiled back innocently and waved at her as she walked away from the playground. "Tony!" He turned around and saw his Dad jogging towards him. "Who were you talking to?" asked Rory.

"A lady was looking for her friend," he answered truthfully.

Rory nodded and took his hand. "Come on, let's head home. And I thought I told you not to talk to strangers," he chided lightly.

"She was a time traveller," he said and then clapped a hand to his mouth. He had promised not to tell anyone.

Rory stared at his son and back towards the empty playground. He had seen a woman walking away when he had started to approach Tony and for a moment, Rory could have sworn it had been…no, it was impossible.

The Doctor had been clear that he and Rose couldn't see them ever again. Whatever he thought he had seen, could not have been Rose Tyler.

Yet, he couldn't help but think he was wrong.


	16. Chapter 15

The days that followed were exciting and disappointing in equal measure. Rose had set up a semi-permanent base at a good rental cottage in the Scottish highlands in 2012. Usually after a few of her trips, she would come back there for some proper rest and relaxation.

She had half a mind to buy the cottage from her landlady after she found the Doctor. It was an excellent place and as happy as she would be calling the TARDIS her home, she had cultivated a sense of independence over the years and it never hurt to have a place for herself. Especially now that she could afford it and Mrs. McCrimmon, her landlady, would be happy to sell it to her.

Her travels with the vortex manipulator took her to different times and places, though she did notice that the coordinates kept to Earth most of the time. Whatever jiggery-pokery the future Doctor had done to the vortex manipulator, it took her to Earth more than anything. She had only been off-planet twice and had been disappointed both times since it was obvious that the TARDIS had already left before she got there.

The locals of the first planet described the people from the blue box as what Rose understood was the Eighth Doctor and a young woman with him. On the second planet, the locals mentioned someone called Ace and the Doctor that Rose was certain was the seventh Doctor.

Rose's travels around the Earth took her all over the place and different time periods at that. She nearly met Richard the Lionheart, escaped not-so-friendly-in-this-universe Ice Warriors, had a minor tussle with UNIT in the 1970s and spent nearly a day running around in Paris for reasons she wasn't quite sure.

Sometimes she wondered if it was just her vortex manipulator leading her to those places. She had known at once that the TARDIS wasn't anywhere nearby when she had met Anthony Williams in New York City yet she had stayed and talked to the boy. She did have to wonder if there was something within her that was drawing her to different people and places around the entirety of time and space. Somehow, it wasn't as alarming or outrageous as it should have been.

It was just after she had witnessed the Great Fire of London in 1666 that an exhausted Rose had returned to her cottage in Scotland. Her next coordinates were ready but she was in no mood to go and see where it took her yet. Her signed copy of 'The Time Machine' was sitting on her table and Rose decided to read some of it before getting some sleep. Meeting Herbert Wells had been an experience and a half, and he had been very eager to give her a signed copy of his book.

She opened it to her bookmarked page and started reading. Outside, the storm was just building up and it was promising to be miserable for a few more days. Rose tuned out everything except the words of the book and slowly, her eyes started to close of their own volition.

A storm building on the horizon…a golden light and the wolf howls…

Rose sat up with a gasp and found herself inside her darkened cottage. She realised that she had fallen asleep at the table and it had got dark in the time that she had taken her little nap. She quickly turned on a few lights and headed to her bathroom to freshen up and change for bed.

The cottage was surprisingly modern despite its quaint exterior and after a shower, Rose was tucked in bed. She had her diary with her and she wrote down her experience in 1666 London with a quiet smile on her face. Her diary was a wonderful record of every place that she had visited ever since she had left Earth in the other universe. Perhaps the Doctor would like to read it and even if he didn't, it was something for her to remember this time by.

As the storm rumbled outside, Rose put her diary away and turned off her bedside lamp. Some sleep and a proper meal later, she would be ready for her new coordinates.

~

Maybe, thought Rose. Should have added a 'maybe' before deciding to be ready for the new coordinates.

She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to stave off the cold but it was futile. Her leather jacket, while very good usually, was no match for the chill atop the Titanic. She decided to duck inside instead of standing onto the deck like a right muppet, but realised that it was a bad idea as she soon saw the shocked gazes of the people.

She usually blended into the crowds or hid in the shadows but this time, neither options looked like they would work. On an impulse, she ducked into the first set of rooms she found unlocked and closed the doors after herself. Thankfully, it was empty and Rose chanced a quick look at the calendar. The date made her heart sink: 14th April, 1912.

She hurriedly checked the time and saw that it was just past 9. She had less than 3 hours before the ship struck the iceberg. She was all set to leave but all her instincts were telling to stay. It was confusing, to say the least.

Her mind made up, Rose opened up the wardrobe and sighed in relief when she found a row of women's dresses. She quickly pulled her jeans, top and leather jacket off and shimmied into one of the Edwardian dresses. It was a bit tight at the waist, especially since she wasn't wearing a corset but it wasn't completely uncomfortable for which she was grateful. She twisted her hair into a bun and then stuffed her old clothes and the vortex manipulator into her messenger bag.

Whoever this dress belonged to wouldn't miss it even if she survived what was about to happen. Rose slid the door open and snuck out quietly, blending into the crowds quite easily now. She followed the general direction of the crowds until she reached a bar. There were some women at the bar, so she didn't hesitate before slipping into a seat and asking the bartender to bring her a brandy. The cold and impending doom demanded it, she rationalised.

The barman gave her the drink without giving her a second glance and Rose was grateful for that. She still wasn't sure why she wasn't running for her life but everything in her was screaming at her to be right where she was. She sighed and was about to sip her drink when she got a look at the man sitting two seats away from her.

Rose nearly spilled her drink all over herself when she saw the familiar man with the ears, slouched over his drink, his eyes dark and brooding. He wasn't looking at her at all, but Rose suddenly felt like someone had put an enormous weight on her chest. She looked away quickly, blinking at her hands before looking back up. He was still there but he was now looking towards her.

His eyes narrowed and he was getting up and walking towards her but Rose couldn't move. She was torn between running into his arms and running away. A sudden image of Reapers devouring him rose in her mind and she prepared to bolt but his hand closed around her wrist. Not roughly, but enough to make her stop.

"What are you?" he demanded, his voice exactly like she remembered. Except he sounded angry. Not angry like he was when he called her a stupid ape. This was the kind of angry she remembered from threatening enemies and demanding they not touch Rose, or else...

Her breath stuttered in her chest and he gave her wrist a tug. "Come with me," he said, his mouth close to her ear. To anyone looking at them, it would like two intimate friends having a quiet conversation. Rose could nearly hear her own hammering heart as she got to her feet and let him lead her out of the bar.

They emerged out onto the cold deck and Rose stared at him. He wasn't dressed in his usual clothes but Rose had seen these clothes before in a drawing in Clive's shed. He was still glaring at her and had his arms crossed angrily.

"Answer me," he said. "You're not Rose Tyler, so who are you?"

Anything that she was about to say fled her mind. "You came here without me?" Rose almost winced at her question. Instead of explaining about timelines or even asking a vaguely coherent question, she had asked the most idiotic question ever.

His glare morphed into an expression of confusion and irritation. "What are you on about?" he demanded. "You said you didn't wanna come."

"You never said you were going to the Titanic," said Rose, racking her brains for a conversation she was quite sure she would have remembered.

"No, I said I have a ship that travels through the universe and you said no," he snapped irritably.

Rose opened her mouth to demand an explanation when it clicked. "Oh my god," she gasped. "It travels in time. Of course!" Her laugh was nearly hysterical at this point.

The Doctor was staring at her in concern now. "How do you know that?" he asked, grabbing her wrist again as if making sure that she was real and not a ghost.

Rose didn't hear him, she was too busy putting the pieces together. He had asked, she had said no, he had left and then he had come back. Except he hadn't. Not immediately like she had thought. How long had he been gone? "How long?" she asked. "How long since we met?"

He looked at her with an inscrutable expression. "A month," he answered. "Not that it's any of your business," he snapped, going on the defensive again. "Now, tell me who you are…"

Rose cut him off by wrapping her arms around him in a hug. She couldn't help it, and she had to wonder how she had kept from doing it for this long. She didn't feel his arms come around her but she didn't let that deter her as she hugged him tightly, feeling both his hearts beating under her cheek.

Then she felt it, a feather light touch at her back before his arms wrapped around her hesitatingly. She smiled into his chest and hummed happily. God, she had missed him. The hug was all wrong for now. He wasn't holding onto her like she anchored his entire universe, nor were his lips touching her ear but those were still his arms wrapped around her shoulders and for once, Rose wanted the world to go hang because she wanted to stay just where she was.

A gust of chilly wind made her shiver and the gesture jolted the Doctor into action. He sprang away from her, staring at her like she was the most frightening thing he had seen. Rose could almost see all of his walls starting to go back up again and his eyes starting to shield his secrets. It was a familiar occurrence; she had seen it countless times before in both these eyes and newer brown ones.

"It's me, it's really me," she whispered, wanting him to understand. The small, logical part of her brain reminded her that timelines were hanging precariously in balance but she couldn't bring herself to care. If he didn't go back for her…Rose didn't even want to contemplate what that would mean. Her quest to find the Doctor now would be futile if he never went back for her in the first place. Not to mention that she wouldn't be the person she was today.

He was staring at her in disbelief but Rose could feel his thoughts practically racing as he tried to understand. "Alright," he said. "If you really are Rose Tyler, prove it."

Rose paused when he said that. She knew things about him that would shock him, make him laugh, scare him, or she could tell him something about herself. And just like that, something clicked in her mind. "When I was 12, you got me a red bicycle for Christmas."

His eyes widened almost comically. "I did that literally a day before I boarded the Titanic," he murmured and Rose wasn't sure if she was meant to hear that. His eyes searched her face for a moment before he gave a curt nod. "Still doesn't explain what you're doing here. Was Rickey hiding a time machine on him?" he asked, slightly mockingly.

"Mickey," she corrected automatically. "And no, he wasn't. Look, things happened and we ended up getting…separated. I'm just finding my way back to you." There, she thought. A truthful explanation without putting timelines in more jeopardy than they already were.

"How did you come to travel with me in the first place?" he demanded.

"You came back," she answered, smiling involuntarily. "Asked me again."

"I don't do that," he said at once.

His adamant tone reminded her of the time that he had declared that he didn't do families. An image of his newly regenerated self sitting in her mother's flat, eating Christmas dinner rose in her mind and she couldn't help the chuckle that slipped past her lips. "I guess you do," she countered gently.

He crossed and uncrossed his arms as if he wasn't quite sure how to respond to that adoring look on her face. Rose hastily cleared her expression, remembering how uncomfortable he used to get in the early days that she had known him. She checked her watch and saw that it was almost 11. Only forty minutes until the ship hit the iceberg.

"You got the TARDIS?" she asked, all business now. A part of her was breaking inside, wishing for more than the detached look he was currently sending her way but they had a fixed point in history waiting to happen and she wanted to make sure that they would both survive it.

He gave a quick nod, looking pleased at the change of subject. "How will you leave?" he asked.

Rose smiled as she reached into her bag and pulled out the vortex manipulator. The Doctor's eyes narrowed at the device but Rose ignored his snort of derision at the 'space hopper' and attached it to her wrist. "Go on then," she said. "Go back to the TARDIS. Unless you fancy a swim in freezing cold water," she teased.

He rolled his eyes. "I know my history, thank you very much," he snapped. But he still didn't move and was watching her with a mixture of confusion and longing.

"You'll forget this, won't you?" she asked suddenly.

He nodded with a tinge of regret. "You were careful but you still let me know a few things that I shouldn't know yet," he said. "I'll lock the memories away as soon as you leave."

"You'll still go back for me, won't you?" She couldn't help the worried tone of her voice.

His gaze softened and he nodded. "I suppose it's only fair," he said.

Rose grinned at him and saw that her coordinates were ready. Knowing that he was going to forget this anyway, she grabbed his cravat and pulled his lips down to hers in a kiss. Her second Doctor would have insisted that the squeak that escaped his mouth was still very manly but Rose didn't care when his arms came around her waist and anchored her to him.

She could half remember her vortex-tainted kiss with him but this was different. This kiss was messy and Rose could feel his nose squashed against her cheek, yet the enthusiasm that his lips were conveying left no doubt that he wanted this.

Rose lost herself in the sensation and when they did pull apart, Rose could almost see the swirl of the vortex within his eyes again.

Then she blinked and it was gone, leaving just her and the Doctor standing on the Titanic, minutes from crashing. She touched her fingers to his cheek almost hesitatingly before taking rapid steps away from him. He stared at her wordlessly but Rose refused to meet his eyes, knowing that she would never find the strength to leave if she looked at him again.

"Rose Tyler…"

She had to steel herself just to look at him and when she did, she saw his brilliant, manic grin that lit up his whole face. Rose felt some tension leave her as she smiled back. "We'll be fantastic, Doctor. I promise," she said before the vortex manipulator's blue energy took her away from him.

The Doctor was so distracted by her final smile and words that it was no wonder he didn't get to the TARDIS in time and had to cling to an iceberg for a few hours before swimming back to the TARDIS.

Dripping wet and shivering with cold in his now-ruined clothes, he set the coordinates to take him back to London on the evening of the Nestene invasion. A change of clothes later, his memories were all locked up and he knew he had failed to mention one thing to the girl that had been on his mind since the day he had laid eyes on her.

The TARDIS landed and he poked his head out, grinning madly. "Did I mention...it also travel in time."


	17. Chapter 16

Rose focused on breathing in and out as she arrived back in her cottage. The cold from the Titanic seemed to have clung to her bones and she was shivering violently. She dropped her bag on the table and pulled the vortex manipulator off her wrist.

She had arrived only a few hours from when she had first left and it was still late afternoon but the storm had made the Highlands dark already. She went into the bathroom and quickly ran the bath. The Edwardian dress was tossed aside as she slowly entered the water.

The water was still quite hot and it was almost painful on her freezing cold skin. But she didn't let it bother her as she closed her eyes and allowed herself to remember the kiss. She knew that the Doctor would likely never remember it but she would always treasure that memory. One of her regrets had been not kissing her first Doctor when she still had time with him.

Yet the goodbye hurt again so much. She loved her second Doctor with all her heart but his daft old face was the one that she had fallen in love with first. Although, she was certain that she would have come to love any and all faces that he had ever had or ever would have. She certainly still liked his future self and had got along with his first self despite their snarky back and forth.

It did make her wonder what it would be like to meet different versions of him. She knew that it was still all too likely that she would run into some other Doctors. One thing that all her jumping back and forth through timelines had taught her was that the Doctor had an incredibly complex life. She wasn't sure if even he understood all of it.

Rose gave a sigh and closed her eyes, trying to stop her brain from whirring into overconcentration. It was something she had noticed happened a lot since she had been trapped in Pete's world and had continued to happen even after she was back in this universe. She could only assume that whatever was preventing her from aging, was also responsible for this.

She needed answers desperately and she was getting a little tired of jumping in and out of time. But if the future Doctor was right, then this was the only way to find her Doctor. Rose sighed again and then dunked her head into the water for a few moments before emerging out. She wasn't all that tired, just a little emotionally drained, so she decided to get dressed and try out a new set of coordinates.

She climbed out of the bath and dressed in a fresh pair of jeans and top, and pulled on her blue leather jacket on top. Her hair was still wet so she twisted it into a knot on top of her head and then laced up her boots and picked up her messenger bag with her usual emergency supplies.

A quick look at the coordinates made her do a double take. She was going off-world. Feeling slightly excited despite everything, she pressed the button and vanished.

~

The bright sunlight made her squint as she materialised at the set coordinates. After the dreary sight of the Highlands, the sunlight was a pleasant surprise. She blinked rapidly to clear her vision and realised that she had arrived at a time of festivities.

The town square that she was in had cheerful music being played as people dressed in simple farmland clothes danced and sang around in a circle. Smiling at the sight, Rose mingled into the crowds, keeping an eye out for a familiar face.

The dancers had huge smiles on their faces as they moved to the catchy music being produced from simple wood-cut instruments. Rose found a spot in the shade to get a better look at the dancers and was considering just joining the circle when a blonde woman dressed in a white sundress entered the circle and was immediately snapped up by one of the locals for a partner. Rose's mouth fell open as she saw herself, or at least, an older version of her giggling happily as she danced to the music.

Her hair was longer again, the way it had been back in Pete's world and not to sound vain, but she looked…beautiful. The sunlight glinted off her hair and she got to understand firsthand why the Doctor always called her 'pink and yellow'. Some rational part of her reminded her about reapers and she sprang into action at once, searching for new coordinates on the vortex manipulator.

"It's odd, isn't it?"

Rose jumped as she turned to look at the curly-haired woman who had approached her. She was just as out of place as Rose herself, dressed in jeans and a jumper.

"Odd?" Rose questioned, having a feeling that she knew exactly what she was referring to.

"Seeing yourself," she said, nodding towards the older Rose who had a different dance partner this time, still one of the locals.

Rose looked at the woman in surprise. "Do I know you?" asked Rose. "Or," she said, looking over to her older self. "Will I know you?"

The woman grinned. "Spoilers, sweetie," she said, winking at her.

"I'll take that as a yes," said Rose, looking at her vortex manipulator where new coordinates were ready for her. She lowered her wrist and looked at the woman curiously. "Any particular reason why I should have met you now?"

"I'm sorry?" the woman looked genuinely surprised.

Rose shrugged. "The people that I have been meeting haven't exactly been random," she said. "Besides, I haven't got the urge to run from you yet so I'm taking that as a good sign."

The woman threw her head back and laughed heartily. "Yes, I can see your point," she said. "To be honest, we weren't exactly sure you would be here now. We visit Jalsa a lot, you see."

"Jalsa? That's the name of this planet?" she asked.

She nodded. "As to why we met now, well I think I might have the most confusing timeline of anyone, apart from you and the Doctor," she said. "To be honest, I'm surprised we didn't run into each other before this."

"Who are you?" asked Rose.

She smiled. "I suppose my name couldn't hurt. I'm Doctor River Song. Nice to meet you, Rose."

Rose shook her offered hand tentatively. "Nice to meet you too," she said. "Can you tell me how we know each other?"

"Sorry, dear," said River with a shrug. "That would be telling."

"Yeah, thought so," said Rose, unsurprised. "Is the Doctor around?"

River grinned and pointed over Rose's shoulder. She turned around to see her older self dancing with the bow-tied Doctor who had met her in Hyde Park all those weeks ago. His movements were slightly awkward and clumsy but he had a wide, happy grin on his face and his eyes were glued at the woman in his arms, reluctant to look away.

"It's been years but he has always looked at you like that," said River with a smile.

Rose smiled too, unable to look away from the couple. "I guess, I never saw how he looked at me," she said, sounding a bit awed.

"Maybe that's why you're here," said River gently. "To have a glimpse of things to come."

Rose reluctantly tore her eyes away from the dancing couple and met River's knowing gaze. "Time can be rewritten," she said, feeling the need to point it out even as the larger part of her soared with hope and happiness.

"Not this time," said River firmly. "Not with you and him. The universe has a few constants, and the Doctor and Rose Tyler are as constant as anything can ever be." Rose didn't quite know how to respond to that pronouncement so she fidgeted with her vortex manipulator. River gave her a sympathetic smile. "You and the Doctor are the closest people I have apart from my own parents. Don't falter now, Rose. You are close. You are so close."

Rose stared at her, the realist in her being silenced by the hope rising in her chest. She felt a sudden need to burst into giggles. Instead, she smiled gratefully at River. "Thanks," she said. "I guess, I needed to hear that."

River grinned and inclined her head in acknowledgment. "Happy to help. It's what we do for each other."

"Then I look forward to meeting you," said Rose, meaning every word of it. She already liked this woman, whoever she might be in the future.

"So do I, Rose," she said. "So do I."

Rose grinned brilliantly at her and checked her coordinates. With a bright smile and a wink, Rose vanished.

River grinned at the empty spot and saw as the dancing winded down in the town square. The locals on Jalsa would take a break for lunch and afternoon siesta before the evening festivities would begin. The Doctor and Rose hurried over to her, slightly flushed with all their dancing.

"Have fun, you lot?" asked River, smiling at them.

"We most certainly did," said the Doctor. "What did you do?"

"Caught up with a friend," shrugged River, watching Rose wink at her.

The Doctor caught the wink and looked between his wife and River. "Something I should know?" he asked.

Rose and River met each others' amused gaze. "No," they both answered in unison. "Nothing at all."

~

Back in present day, Rose had just arrived at her new coordinates. Her spirits had lifted, and the sight of her future self had done wonders for her mood and morale.

Feeling considerably lighter since the last day or so, she noted with a grin that she was in Paris again. This was only the second time she had been to Paris. The first time had been on one of her past jumps. But that had been the 1970s and this was definitely the early 21st century.

It was quite odd that she had been to Paris only twice considering that she had lived in England almost all of her life. She and Jackie could never afford vacations, and she and the Doctor had avoided France quite a lot especially since the incident with Madame de Pompadour. Even in Pete's world, she had only ever gone to Dijon for a while, and spent a week on the French Riviera, but never Paris.

Eager to explore her surroundings, she glanced around the various people seated at the cafes lining the road and felt slightly deflated when she didn't find who she was looking for. No sign of pinstripes, or the great hair. She hoisted her messenger bag higher on her shoulder and fought back to regain the feeling of euphoria that the visit to Jalsa and the meeting with River Song had given her.

Her good mood returned, she decided to have some coffee and look around before going back to the cottage for a proper rest.

The cafes were full seeing as it was almost lunchtime but Rose managed to find a small, unoccupied table at the third café that she walked by. A server came by and Rose asked for some coffee and a sandwich in broken French, wishing she still had her translation software from Serenity. One advantage of just travelling around the Earth was that English never failed her and it seemed she could add Jalsa to the list of planets that understood English too. Either that, or she had been caught in the telepathic field of the TARDIS since she had been able to understand the locals perfectly while she had been there.

With a slight shake of her head she returned to the present and looked around the café. She noticed a woman sitting at the table next to hers with slightly red eyes, a tell-tale sign of someone who had been crying and didn't want anyone else to see. She was dressed in a lavender coloured air hostess uniform. The uniform was slightly old-fashioned if Rose was honest, considering that a shop she had passed had revealed it to be 2009.

"You alright?" Rose asked her in concern.

She looked at her in surprise and gave a curt nod. "Yeah, fine," she answered. Rose noted that her accent sounded Australian.

"You on a layover or something?" Rose asked, trying to make conversation.

She laughed bitterly. "No, I am stuck," she said. "Before my first ever flight on the job."

"Sorry to hear that," said Rose sympathetically. "Where are you supposed to be?"

"Heathrow," she said and then stopped herself from saying something, which Rose noticed. "The man I am travelling with isn't very reliable in getting me there."

"Ah," said Rose, smiling as she guessed who that would be. "Sorry to hear that." She gave a shrug of acknowledgment. "So, this man. What's he like?" asked Rose, wanting to make sure that it was the right Doctor before rushing up to him.

"Annoying," she answered. "I think he used to be a bit sane before, but then he changed and is now sort of…new."

"Ah," said Rose again, feeling her heart sink. Not her Doctor then. Some other future or past Doctor whom this woman had seen regenerate, even if she hadn't said it outright. But a part of her still held out hope. "I knew someone like that once."

"Sorry to hear that," she said. "I wouldn't wish his driving skills on anyone."

Rose laughed. "Yeah, know what you mean," she said.

The woman gave a small smile. "I'm Tegan," she said, holding out her hand. "Tegan Jovanka."

"Rose Tyler," she said and shook her hand. "Hang in there. He'll get you there in the end."

"Doesn't seem very likely from where I'm standing," said Tegan. "You sound fairly confident though," she added, as if realising for the first time that she might have said too much.

"Call it intuition, or at least experience of travelling with someone with a rubbish driving record," said Rose as the waitress poured coffee for her. "Can I buy you a cuppa?"

"Nah, I think I'll be on my way," said Tegan, looking slightly sheepish. "He'll be looking for me. I came here in a bit of a strop."

"Understandable," said Rose, sipping her coffee. "Might try cutting him some slack. Worked wonders with mine."

"Maybe," said Tegan, looking like she was considering it. "Anyway, thanks for the chat. I guess I needed it."

"Happy to help," said Rose, meaning it. "Hope you get to Heathrow soon."

"You and me both," said Tegan, smiling at her. "Alrighty then. Goodbye."

"Bye," said Rose, waving at her as Tegan left the café with a small smile on her face.

With a fond sigh, Rose started nibbling on her sandwich. She was definitely going to ask the Doctor about Tegan Jovanka. She had a feeling that it would make for an interesting story at the very least. Rose had almost got through half of her sandwich when she caught a flash of lavender out of the corner of her eye.

She turned to look and her eyebrows shot up when she saw a Tegan running behind a slightly younger girl dressed in burgundy and a boy dressed in the oddest yellow and khaki clothes. And in the lead was…

"Doctor," murmured Rose to herself as she saw the fifth incarnation of the Doctor, celery on lapel and all, running like there was an alien invasion nearby. Which in all likelihood there was.

Resisting the urge to run after them and see what was going on, Rose entered the coordinates to go back to her cottage. Checking that no one was looking directly at her, she vanished.

~

"That's odd," said the Doctor as he came to a sudden halt.

"What is?" asked Tegan, starting to look annoyed again. She had been ready to play nice after her talk with Rose in the café but before she could have done so, the Doctor had coming running out, shouting about some temporal anomaly in the area.

Then, he had just taken off running, with Nyssa and Adric following him, leaving Tegan no choice but to join the chase. But now he had come to an abrupt halt after making them run all the way from the TARDIS.

"It's gone," he said.

Resisting the urge to shout at him, Tegan took a calming breath. "Splendid, can we go back to the TARDIS now? I have a flight to catch, remember?"

The Doctor looked at her and nodded, looking slightly chastened. "I'll set course for Heathrow," he promised.

Tegan very much wanted to point out that he had said that before but remembering Rose's advice, she gave a small nod. "Thank you, Doctor."

Extremely taken aback at that reaction, he looked at her like she had sprouted an extra pair of ears. At her scowl, he nodded quickly. "Let us return to the TARDIS," he said in the direction of Nyssa and Adric. "We have to get Tegan to Heathrow."


	18. Chapter 17

It was nearly a week after Rose's visit to Paris, when something odd seemed to happen. She had spent a few futile hours combing San Francisco during the millennial celebration when she had felt a time distortion. Feeling the need to investigate further, she had used her vortex manipulator to do a few scans but nothing substantial had turned up.

Getting frustrated, both at the mystery and the chill in the air, she had wandered to an empty city park. At least she had thought that it was empty until she bumped into a red-headed woman with a bright smile on her face. She didn't even seem to notice Rose as she walked away, with the same silly grin on her face.

Rose raised her eyebrows at the bizarre behaviour but somehow got the same feeling of familiarity from her that she had come to expect from the presence of people familiar with the Doctor. She did briefly consider going after her and talking to her but something in her instincts made her turn away from the woman.

She disappeared around the corner, and Rose turned to regard the empty park with a sigh. It was nicer than most parks she had come across; there was a huge fountain with a series of stone slabs across the water that acted as stepping stones to get to the other end of the park.

Feeling just a bit mischievous and excited, she hopped across the slabs reminiscing about her first Doctor and her having to hop for their lives. She was nearly at the other end when a familiar noise rose up through the air. Rose landed awkwardly on the last slab, doing her hardest not to fall into the water as the TARDIS started materialising two feet away from her on top of the stairs.

A chiming, melodious curse word that her Doctor had seemed to reserve for moments when he cut himself shaving, escaped her mouth. This was not good, this was not good at all.

It was the first time that she had come so close to the TARDIS after being back in this universe and apart from the potential paradox that this might cause, it was also taking everything she had in her to stop from crossing the distance and running a hand over the familiar blue box.

The final thud of the TARDIS landing was what broke her and her feet moved without her consent as she ran up the stairs and ran her hand along the rough wood of the beloved time machine that had felt more like home to her than anything else in two universes.

"Hello," she murmured, tears pricking her eyes as she stroked the wooden exterior gently.

The doors creaked open and Rose darted to the side of the box, hiding from sight. A man stumbled out the doors and Rose's hand clapped to her mouth as she recognised the Doctor in his eighth incarnation. He was standing just outside the doors of the TARDIS and as Rose tried to sidle away quietly, he gave a mournful sigh and sat down on the steps.

Fingers hovering over her vortex manipulator, Rose fought with the inherent need in her to help the man she loved more than anything and her responsibility to the space-time continuum. He looked extremely child-like, sitting with his knees drawn towards his chest and his chin resting on them. Rose was trying to decide what to do when he spoke in a quiet, melodic voice.

"You know, if you are planning to kill me you should hurry," he said, without turning around.

"I'm not trying to kill you," Rose blurted out without a second thought.

To her great surprise, his posture relaxed into a far happier one and he turned around to look at her. Rose stifled a gasp; his hologram had not done him justice. Distantly, she wondered how her Northern Doctor had dared call Adam pretty after seeing what he had looked like in this incarnation. He was extremely handsome, more so than any incarnation of the Doctor she had ever met, except maybe her hyperactive, pinstriped Doctor. Even then, it would have been a close call to pick between those two.

He was smiling widely at her, his twinkling eyes warm and knowing at the same time. "Have a seat, won't you Rose?"

Rose's eyes went wide, both at the hand he extended towards her and the easy way that he had used her name. "How…how do you know my name?" she asked, staying right where she was though she was tempted to take the hand he had offered her.

He seemed unperturbed by her hesitation, almost like he had been expecting it. "I tend to get curious when a mysterious blonde woman seems to use my personal timeline to play hopscotch," he said.

Rose snorted at the absurd description, but took his hand and let him pull her down to sit next to him. "'M not playin'," she said, noting that he hadn't let go of her hand.

"No, I think not," he said and looked carefully at her. "You have come so far, Rose Tyler," he said, sounding like he was seeing much more than just the deserted park in San Francisco.

"It's alright," she said, feeling like she had to reassure him. "I made my choice."

"Perhaps you have to consider if it is worth it," he said carefully, almost like he wanted to see what she would do. "If I am worth it."

Rose was about to respond that of course he was, when she saw the slight challenge in his gaze. Indignation rose in her heart before she could tamp it down. "You tryin' to warn me off?" she asked, trying and failing to sound calm.

His expression betrayed nothing but there was a glimmer in his eyes at her fierce response to his suggestion. A contemplative smile played at his lips as his thumb stroked their clasped hands in a gesture so familiar that Rose couldn't help but tighten her grip on his hand. "I'm not trying to warn you off," he said slowly. "But what I do know of my life is that it is hard and sometimes I have difficult decisions to make." His gaze seemed to pierce her very soul as he spoke his next words. "When you love me, Rose, I can never promise you that I would not put the universe before you."

"I know that," said Rose, returning his gaze without hesitation. "Save the world but lose me. Hasn't stopped me yet and I doubt it ever will."

He stared at her for a long moment as if searching for something in the depths of her eyes. Finally, a joyful smile graced his face as his gaze turned tender, almost loving. "Quite right too," he said and brought his lips to hers in a kiss. Startled at the gesture but feeling herself respond just the same, Rose allowed herself to fall into the emotion that his kiss was trying to convey.

"Doctor," she murmured against his lips, starting to feel dizzy at the sensations coursing through her body and mind. This was her first proper kiss with the Doctor that he had initiated, but even then she could sense that there was something quite desperate in the way that he was kissing her.

"They've called me to Gallifrey," he said, answering her unspoken question as he rested his forehead against hers. "I don't know why but I know that it is not something that will end well." Rose stiffened and started to say something when he pressed his lips to hers again to shush her. "Don't tell me," he murmured softly as he pulled away.

Rose nodded slowly, feeling her heart clench painfully in her chest. She knew what he was going into and she knew exactly how it ended for him, his people and his planet. She had seen firsthand what this charming, handsome Doctor with his gentlemanly countenance would become and how much it would hurt him for the rest of time. She knew what sort of nightmares would plague him through his nights and the anguish he would bear through his days.

She loved him more than she could say but she could never protect him from what was about to come. But she could ease his pain, if only a little. If only for tonight…

"Come with me," she whispered, as she took both his hands and stood up.

He didn't fight her as he got to his feet and let her pull him into the TARDIS. She told him the space-time coordinates that he entered into the console without a word of protest. He needed this, he realised. He needed her.

When the TARDIS landed, it was near a small cottage in the Scottish Highlands. It was chaos outside, with torrential rainfall, accompanied by thunder, lightning and winds that would blow away anyone brave enough to venture into the storm but as the two of them ran towards the cottage, it all became inconsequential.

The inside was warm and dry, but without any electricity as Rose realised after flipping the switches on and off futilely. Power failure was evidently a common thing since Rose didn't bat an eye as she produced a lighter from one of the drawers and started lighting the candles placed around the cottage.

They had yet to say a word since Rose had told him the coordinates to this place and the Doctor was starting to wonder if she was regretting bringing him here. But then her eyes met his and the doubts seemed to melt away.

In the soft candlelight, her eyes looked almost ethereal as they shone with the all the times that were yet to come for both of them. If the Doctor had ever doubted that the woman who had been so intrinsically linked to his timeline was everything he could ever dare to wish for, he didn't anymore. Rose Tyler was unique, beautiful and by some miracle, she was his.

She offered him her hand and there was no hesitation on either of their parts as they came together in a moment brighter than the flash of lightning that shone over the darkened Highlands. Time seemed to move languorously, almost as if it was aware that this moment was one of its kind and neither the impending fate of Gallifrey nor their certain farewell could cast a shadow on it.

The storm raged outside the tiny cottage and drowned out the gasps and moans of the two lovers as all titles and responsibilities to their planets and timelines fell away from them until they were a man and a woman entwined in a passionate embrace.

Their minds came together, and a flurry of images passed the Doctor's mind as he saw the beginning in a shop and the goodbye on a cold Norwegian beach. He was tempted to delve further, to seek out more than those fleeting snippets of memories but then she was there with him, guiding him towards a mutual finish and he could think no more.

As they lay sweating and panting next to each other on the small, uncomfortable bed, the Doctor fumbled for her hand and whispered a series of unfamiliar words across her knuckles. Rose didn't even have to ask what they meant before she whispered 'I love you too'.

She must have dozed off soon after because when she awoke, the bed was empty but it wasn't yet morning. Only a single candle on the table next to her bed had been left alight, and as Rose turned her head towards it, she saw a delicate red rose resting on a piece of folded white paper.

Hands trembling lightly, she set the flower aside and opened the note. In elegant script that had to belong to the Doctor, was a well-known verse.

_Fare thee well, my only love_

_Fare thee well, a while_

_And I will come again, my love_

_Though it were ten thousand miles…_

~

In his TARDIS, the Doctor prepared to fold away the most precious memory in his lives into the recess of his mind. For everything that was to come, that memory would be his luminous beacon against the darkness. He wasn't certain if that would be enough, but it made him felt stronger than he had been before seeing Rose in San Francisco.

He thought of the wondrous woman sleeping peacefully inside that cottage and looked down at the coordinates of where he was. His precious girl had come so far to find him and it just wasn't fair that she still had to jump across timelines for him.

"This warrants a bit of cheating, don't you think old girl?" he murmured as he memorised the coordinates and finally sealed up the memory.

Rose Tyler had run towards him for far too long. It was time for him to come after her.

As the Doctor prepared to return to Gallifrey in his eighth life, several years in his personal future the Tenth Doctor woke up from a vivid dream as the memory unfurled in his mind. Feeling the coordinates in his mind as easily as he knew his own name, he ran to the console room at a speed that seemed to defy the very nature of time.

"Rose," he murmured to himself, twisting dials and pulling levers at an astonishing pace. "I am coming to get you."


	19. Chapter 18

_Previously_

_As the Doctor prepared to return to Gallifrey in his eighth life, several years in his personal future the Tenth Doctor woke up from a vivid dream as the memory unfurled in his mind. Feeling the coordinates in his mind as easily as he knew his own name, he ran to the console room at a speed that seemed to defy the very nature of time._

_"Rose," he murmured to himself, twisting dials and pulling levers at an astonishing pace. "I am coming to get you."_

All those signs, all those indications of Bad Wolf, all of that had been true. Rose was really back and she had been looking for him for so long. The Doctor felt like both his hearts would burst with joy. He was going to see Rose again.

He was a bit thankful that Donna was off visiting her mum and granddad, and Jenny was still at the Luna University. He would introduce them to Rose later; for now, he just wanted to see her and hold her in his arms. Other details of the memory filtered into his mind and he felt himself go red. Perhaps more than just holding her then, he decided.

The TARDIS landed and he vaguely registered that it was mid-afternoon and the storm had let up. There was still a light drizzle in the air but he didn't care as he ran to the cottage that his eighth self hadn't got a chance to examine properly because of the storm.

In the bleak daylight now, it looked quaint and quite beautiful. He could see why Rose would have liked it. The thought of her being only a few feet away from him propelled his feet into action as he ran to the door and unlocked it with the sonic screwdriver, too impatient to knock and wait for her.

"ROSE! Rose!"

He could hear both his hearts hammering in his chest as he ran inside the cottage but there was no reply from Rose. The Doctor tried not to give in to the sinking feeling as he called for her again and walked through the cottage.

The smell of melted wax still lingered in the air but the bed had been made up and there was no sign of Rose. Afraid that he had just missed her, he was about to head back to the TARDIS to try and trace her when he saw the vortex manipulator sitting on top of the table. The rose and note left by his eighth self were placed next to it. A bag filled with Rose's belongings was tossed to the side and a closed diary was tucked into the side pocket of the messenger bag.

Curiosity overcoming everything else, the Doctor sat down on the bed and opened the diary. He recognised Rose's writing at once and his hearts gave a leap as he read the first entry. 'Dear Doctor…' it began and the Doctor started reading as Rose's story unfolded from the moment she had been taken to Mars by Commander Skaldak and Ssari. Interspersed among the entries were details of her life in Pete's world, and the Doctor realised with a pang that it had been far longer for her than it had been for him.

By the time he reached her second to last entry, he had tears in his eyes. He was so proud of her, so much in awe of her, and so grateful for whatever had given her the ability to give him forever. Rose Tyler, the Bad Wolf, Defender of the Earth, and the most remarkable woman he had ever known had chosen to love an old, lonely alien like him.

He ran a hand over his eyes to wipe the tears before turning the page to the last entry.

_Dear Doctor,_

_It feels odd writing this one. It is always hard to write when I run into one of your other selves but this time was different. I don't know if you remember, if you will ever remember, but I doubt I will ever forget last night. Perhaps it was as much for my sake as yours that we met like that._

_It hurt me not to tell you what was to come. Of course I learned my lesson with the reapers but I know that I wish I could spare you the pain of the Time War. You deserve so much more than you have been given and it pains me to see you lose so much. The universe is a bitch sometimes._

_I wasn't surprised when I awoke to find you gone. You never were good at dealing with the aftermath of things. I have to admit that even I wouldn't have known what to say after all that. It was one of the best nights of my life, as well as being the most difficult but I wouldn't change a thing about it. I love you, my Doctor, and if even a distant memory of last night helped you in anyway then my goal was successful._

_Oh, and the flower and the note was a nice touch. Robert Burns was always a favourite of mine as you well remember since you introduced his work to me. Now maybe I'm wondering if last night subconsciously affected your decision about that. It's funny how timelines work sometimes._

_I am taking today off from universe hopping. I actually feel like going for a walk even if it looks like it might start raining again soon. But I will be back looking for you once I get back._

_I will find you, I promise._

_Love,_

_Rose._

The entry came to an end and the Doctor ran a reverent finger over the 'I love you' she had written. The memory of the past night had helped him more than she could ever know. He'd frequently dreamt of it during the rare moments of sleep in midst of the war and he'd found the strength to keep going, as Arcadia fell, the Time Lords lost and Gallifrey burned.

The need to see her returned in full force. He reread the part where she said she was going for a walk, and he dropped the diary on the bed and ran from the cottage. There were prints in the mud leading down a path to the west and the Doctor ran faster than he ever had in his lives as he followed the tracks.

The path sloped downwards but he didn't pause as he ran through the squelchy moors. His internal time senses registered that he had been running for a full twenty minutes when he saw a figure in the distance. The drizzle that had gradually changed to a steady rain drenched him completely as he came to a stop a few metres away from the woman who had her arms flung wide open and her eyes closed as she tilted her head to the sky.

The rain was soaking her clothes and hair but she had a quiet smile on her face as she just relished in the feel of rain against her skin. The Doctor had a flashback to the planet of Lavazza when he and Rose had got caught in the rain while running back to the TARDIS. They had shaken off the horde chasing them a few miles away but they'd been so soaked that they had just stopped to enjoy the rain.

Rose had been in much the same position as she was in now and the Doctor had just looked at her, the beauty of Lavazza (murderous hordes not withstanding) paling in comparison to her. He had wanted to kiss her then but said murderous horde had somehow picked up their trail again and they'd had to leg it back to the TARDIS quite quickly.

But there were no murderous hordes now, nor was there anything stopping him as he ran those last few steps towards her. Her eyes opened as he got closer and the smile that came over her face would have put the brightest stars in the sky to shame.

In a split second, she was running towards him and there was nothing to stop them as they met in the middle and wrapped their arms around each other so closely that it would be difficult to tell where one began and the other ended. Rose felt her feet being swept off the ground as the Doctor proceeded to twirl her around, both of them laughing and weeping at the same time.

It was only when Rose shivered in his arms that they realised that they were both soaked to the bone and it was quite cold outside. But then their eyes met properly for the first time and the warmth that blazed through both their hearts made the cold inconsequential.

"Rose Tyler," the Doctor whispered, still holding her tightly in his arms.

"Yeah?" she breathed, her hands tangling into the soft, wet hairs at the nape of his neck.

He brushed her nose with his. "I love you."

Rose laughed breathlessly as she tilted her face up in clear invitation. "Quite right too," she murmured. "I love you, Doctor."

His grip around her tightened as their lips met in a fierce kiss. Years of passion, devotion and love culminated into a kiss that shook them both down to their very souls. Timelines, past and future, converged and diverged before becoming intertwined in an exquisite bond that resonated through all of time and space.

Serenity, thought the Doctor, as he kissed the woman he loved with all his hearts. The feeling of peace and tranquillity. Rose had named her ship perfectly. It was how he felt when she was in his arms.

For Rose, being in his arms felt like she was finally home. She had questions for him of course, most notably how he had found her but they could wait, as could the rest of the universe.

Their lips broke apart as their lungs ached with the need to breathe. The Doctor smiled down at her as he linked their hands together and said just one word. The word that had started it all. "Run."

And so they did, all the way back to the cottage. They were both out of breath by the time they got there but Rose gave a cry of delight as she saw the TARDIS and immediately pulled out the chain around her neck to unlock the door with her key. The Doctor watched her with a beaming smile as she ran inside and ran a loving hand over the time rotor which brightened immediately under her ministrations.

"Hello, old girl," Rose whispered as she felt the warmth from the TARDIS infuse her mind, delighting in her wolf's return. "I missed you too."

She felt the Doctor's arms wrap around her waist as he hugged her from behind and buried his face in her neck. The two of them stayed just like that, letting the song of the TARDIS soothe them as she basked in the joy of her thief and wolf being together again.

There were things to do, questions to answer, and children and companions to introduce, but for that moment, it was just the Doctor and Rose Tyler in the TARDIS.

Just as it should be.

_**Epilogue — Four Hundred (Relative) Years Later** _

"I don't know what you mean. The silver looks nice," said Rose contemplatively.

The Doctor made a face as he turned this way and then that as he appraised his hair. "And the accent?"

"Scottish, very nice," she teased with a wink. She appraised him from head to toe. "Not that much taller than you were before."

He raised his eyebrows, another novelty in this body Rose noted, and pulled her towards him. "Still the perfect height to kiss then?" he asked, some uncertainty letting itself known under the sure persona of this new regeneration.

Rose replied by raising herself on her tiptoes to let her lips touch his in a slow, lazy kiss. "The perfect height to kiss," she agreed.

He smiled, placated for the time being. Rose almost rolled her eyes at the never changing vanity he seemed to possess in every regeneration. She was so going to remind him of this the next time he complained about her need to change her whole wardrobe. Call her human, but a change was good every few decades and he hadn't seemed to mind when she had worn nothing but skirts and sundresses for about three decades. Something about easy access and less layers.

A light beeping drew their attention away from their own thoughts and Rose picked up her battered yet trusty old vortex manipulator which had an emergency beacon lit up on it. With a sigh, she opened the message and read it quickly.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked, looking at the bowtie like it was something he wanted to shred with his bare hands.

"Our daughter thought it would be funny to steal the Mona Lisa from the 31st century revival exhibit," said Rose. "Something about a fake painting being undeserving of being in the exhibit."

"They're all fake," said the Doctor absently. "I personally went back in time and wrote FAKE in black felt tip on the blank canvases before good old Leo painted them."

Rose stared at him as if trying to gauge if he was joking or not. More than four centuries they'd been married and she still couldn't tell. "Anyway, I've gotta go and break her out of prison. You'll be alright, won't you?"

He nodded. "I should go and talk to Clara. Poor girl was a wee bit shocked."

Rose slapped his arm as she entered the coordinates to take her to Jenny's location. "That's what happens when you don't warn your companions about regeneration," she said as he grinned at her. "In any case, Jenny and I will drop by later. I love you."

"And I love you, Rose Tyler," he said, relishing the way his new accent made it sound. Judging by the heated look she shot him, so did she. A flash of bright blue and she was gone but he knew that she would be back.

For faces could change, people could come and go, and time could pass, but the Doctor and Rose Tyler were forever.

**THE END ~**


End file.
